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Lalu adds political colour to BCCI-ICL standoff

The continuing standoff between the BCCI and the Indian Cricket League today took political overtones with Railway Minister and Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Lalu Prasad openly backing the multi-million dollar rebel League.

Three days after Congress General Secretary Digvijay Singh urged the BCCI to abandon its "confrontationist stand" against the League, Prasad described the ICL as a "good initiative" and offered to make the Railways stadium available for the proposed twenty20 tournament.
Prasad, who is also the President of the Bihar Cricket association, is known to have ambitions to occupy a bigger post in the cricket establishment and therefore his support to the ICL assumes significance.

"It is a good initiative. It will give rise to competition and good players will be encouraged. The parallel league is a good thing for those who complain that they were not selected or were ignored. This competition will be good for spotting good players," he said on the sidelines of a press conference at the Rail Bhawan in New Delhi.

"We will definitely allow them to play on our stadiums. We will charge little money for it," he added.

As the BCCI continued to blow hot and cold on the contentious issue, public statements by politicians in favour of the League has given a new twist to the tussle.

Source-Cricketzone.com