Rajiv Shukla briefs PM on IPL controversy

New Delhi: With the controversy over IPL raging, BCCI Vice-President Rajiv Shukla met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. This was the second meeting Shukla, who is also a Congress MP, had with the Prime Minister in the last three days. "How can I disclose what transpired between me and my leader?" Shukla asked while talking to reporters. The meeting comes in the backdrop of reports that the Prime Minister was concerned over the issue. "The Prime Minister is our leader and we keep meeting him," he said replying to questions. Asked to comment on IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi`s refusal to resign, Shukla said the Governing Council will take an appropriate decision. Modi, who is facing allegations of financial irregularities and favouring family and friends in franchise bids, has so far refused to step down from his post despite mounting pressure. On government`s role with regard to the IPL issue, Shukla said the issue was raised in Parliament and so the government has to take cognisance of it. IPL owners under Khurshid’s radar Stating that it cannot `shut` eyes to the IPL controversy, the Corporate Affairs Ministry said it is scrutinising records of all the franchises. "We cannot just shut our eyes (to IPL controversy)... We are doing our own due diligence," Corporate Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid told reporters when asked whether the Ministry was looking into the documents filed by IPL franchises with the Registrar of Companies (RoC). "Records are available with us and we are going through the records. Frankly, whatever is thrown up by the investigations of the Finance Ministry...we will do what is required to be done," Khurshid said on the sidelines of an Assocham event here. The Ministry, he further said, would try to find out whether the "equity structure (of IPL franchises) is hazy or not...filings are available. If there is any discrepancy, we will look into it."The MCA, yesterday, directed the RoCs to collect within a week all details on IPL franchises, including the bidding process, sweat equity, memorandum of association and also franchise agreement. The probe follows the controversy over ownership of the Kochi IPL franchise, where Rendezvous Sports World had given 19 per cent of the 25 per cent stake held by it to Sunanda Pushkar, a close friend of Shashi Tharoor, who resigned as a Union Minister in the face of allegations that he had misused his official position. The RoCs, sources say, would have to provide details on 10 franchises, including Kolkata Knight Riders` owner Red Chillies Entertainment, Mumbai Indians` India Sports Win, Sahara Adventure Sports Group of the Pune team, Kochi team`s Rendezvous Sports, owners Chennai Super Kings India Cements and that of Royal Challengers Bangalore`s GMR Sports. "It will be a non-invasive scrutiny where RoCs will not approach companies asking for papers, but information will be collected based on whatever documents are already available with the RoCs," an official said. PTI