Is corporate governance alien to the IPL

The controversy surrounding the Kochi IPL franchise raises a number of uneasy questions for Ashok Malik, who poses some of them in Hindustan Times.

Was similar 'guidance' offered to bidders when the eight original franchises were sold in 2008? Is Kochi the only franchise with multiple proxy ownership suspicions - another person is supposed to be standing in for a Mumbai-based former cricketer - or does this cosy matrix extend to other teams? In handing out jobs and contracts at the IPL, did Modi invite tenders, issue job ads or did he just do as he pleased? In 'guiding' bidders and, initially, attempting to fix parameters so that only two bids were valid for - coincidentally - two franchises, was he acting on behalf of two powerful ministers who were themselves 'mentoring' teams?

Rohit Mahajan gets behind the scenes in Outlook's cover story to understand all the angles and potential off-shoots of the Kochi controversy.

Playing the unfamiliar role of a whistleblower, Modi was possibly unaware of its first consequence: immediate, intense scrutiny of the alarm-raiser himself. Unfortunately for Modi, his private dealings and operations as IPL commissioner don’t present a very flattering picture. His family’s ties with the IPL present a conflict of interest with his incumbency.