BCCI introduces stern measures to counter age fraud

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has proposed to introduce stern measures to tackle the issue of age fraud in the Indian cricketing arena. An amnesty plan has been put forward to counter the growing cases of players botching their actual age. Under the proposed amnesty plan, the transgressor would be given the opportunity to voluntarily accept their offense and provide the real date of birth.

This amnesty proposal would cover all the registered players under the BCCI. Also, any contravention of the law would lead to serious consequences for the offenders. The deadline for voluntarily reporting the transgression has been fixed on 15th September 2020. If any such age-fraud was uncovered after the deadline, the player could be banned for two years; and even after the completion of the suspension, be banned from participating in any age- group competition.

The Wall of Indian cricket and the present head of National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru Rahul Dravid had remarked that how cases of age-botching can prove to be detrimental to the culture of Indian Cricket. The nuisance of age-fraud snatches away the opportunity from some young talented players to showcase their potential at various levels. Dravid had remarked that the age-fraud should be checked right at the grass-root level. A lot of damage is already done by the time the cases of age-fraud are unearthed by the BCCI.

It serves to bring the reputation of Indian cricket down globally

Last year, the BCCI banned the Jammu and Kashmir bowler Rasikh Salam, after it was discovered; he had botched his age while registration. Similarly, Manjot Kalra, whose century in the 2018 U-19 World Cup had propelled India to a victory against Australia; has also been found guilty of hiding his real age. The BCCI president, Sourav Ganguly reiterated the BCCI’s decision to take this nuisance of age-fraud more seriously; and punishing the culprits if they fail to voluntarily accept their fault.

However, the age-fraud amnesty scheme would not apply to cases of domicile fraud. Players below fourteen years of age would also be barred from participating in Under-16 tournaments. The BCCI had also introduced helpline numbers to report cases of age-fraud.

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