Can Harbhajan Singh not take a joke?
This is the question raised by Vijay Mallya of United Breweries(UB).
The liquor magnate was slapped with a legal notice by Avtar Kaul, the Singh family matriarch.
The distressed mother has gone on to charge the UB Group with offending the Sikh community and fostering disunity within the Indian cricket team.
The cause for offense is a UB commercial parodying Bhajji’s appearance for the Royal Stag brand from the Pernod Ricard stable.
With the IPL imbroglio boiling over and culminating in the expulsion of two teams, Kings XI and Rajasthan Royals, let’s take a quick look at the scenarios that could unfold:
1> The two franchise owners could go to court thus staying the auction of players in Jan 2011. This could have the effect of jeopardising or at the least delaying IPL 4 with two possibilities arising: one that the teams are reinstated and thus IPL 4 goes on as scheduled , with some last-minute patch-ups and glitches.
The other is that the BCCI move is upheld and Raj Kundra and Preity Zinta sustain losses on their investments. The fans of Rajasthan Royals and Punjab XI are left feeling disgruntled and the other franchisee owners are left holding their queasy tummies in the sickening realization that the BCCI is a law unto itself and business motivations can take a backseat.