DC bowling coach Munaf fined 25 percent of match fee for IPL Code of Conduct breach
New Delhi (PTI): Delhi Capitals bowling coach Munaf Patel has been fined 25 percent of his match fee and accumulated one demerit point for breaching the IPL Code of Conduct during the high-octane game against Rajasthan Royals here.
The match went down to the wire on Wednesday night with DC winning the edge-of-the-seat thriller in a Super Over after both teams were tied at 188 runs.
The former India pacer "admitted to the Level 1 offence under Article 2.20 of the IPL Code of Conduct, which pertains to the conduct that is contrary to the spirit of the game," said an IPL statement.
"Munaf Patel, Bowling Coach, Delhi Capitals has been fined 25 per cent of his match fees and has also accumulated One Demerit Point for breaching the IPL Code of Conduct during his team's match against Rajasthan Royals at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi on Wednesday," said the statement
Munaf, the statement said, had "accepted the Match Referee's sanction".
The statement did not specify Munaf's exact offence but it is likely that he was penalised for his argument with a match official after the former India pacer was not allowed to send a player into the middle to convey his message.
Munaf, a key member of India's 2011 ODI World Cup-winning squad under MS Dhoni, was appointed DC bowling coach in November last year replacing James Hopes.
Article 2.20 covers all types of conduct that are contrary to the spirit of the game and are not specifically and adequately covered by the specific offences set out elsewhere in this Code of Conduct.
"...Article 2.20 may (depending upon the seriousness and context of the breach) prohibit, without limitation, the following: (a) the use of an illegal bat or illegal wicket-keeping gloves; and (b) failure to comply with the provisions of clause 6.3 of the IPL Match Playing Conditions," the IPL Code of Conduct states.
"...the context of the particular situation, and whether it was deliberate, reckless, negligent, avoidable and/or accidental, shall be considered. The person lodging the Report shall determine where on the range of severity the conduct lays (with the range of severity starting at conduct of a minor nature (and hence a Level 1 Offence) up to conduct of an extremely serious nature (and hence a Level 4 Offence)."
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UK Professor Nitasha Kaul's Overseas Citizenship of India cancelled
Academician decries move as "transnational repression"
London/New Delhi: Professor Nitasha Kaul, a London-based academic, announced on May 18, 2025, via a social media post that her Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) card has been cancelled by the Indian government. She described the move as a "bad faith, vindictive, cruel example of transnational repression" intended to punish her for her scholarly work critical of the Modi government's policies concerning minorities and democracy.
The cancellation follows an incident in February 2024 when Professor Kaul, who holds a British passport and held an OCI card, was denied entry into India upon arrival at Bengaluru airport. She had been invited by the then Congress-led Karnataka state government to speak at a conference on "The Constitution and Unity in India."
According to an image of the letter shared by Professor Kaul, the Indian government stated that it had been "brought to the notice of the Government of India that you have been found indulging in anti-India activities, motivated by malice and complete disregard for facts or history." The letter further accused her of regularly targeting India and its institutions on matters of India's sovereignty through "numerous inimical writings, speeches and journalistic activities at various international forums and on social media platforms."
Professor Kaul, who is a Professor of Politics, International Relations, and Critical Interdisciplinary Studies and the Director of the Centre for the Study of Democracy (CSD) at the University of Westminster, London, vehemently rejects these accusations. She stated she had provided a 20,000-word response to what she termed the government's "ridiculous inanity about ‘anti-India’," but the OCI was cancelled through a "rigged process."
In her social media posts, Professor Kaul lamented the decision, questioning how the "mother of democracy" could deny her access to her mother in India. She characterized the action as stemming from "thin-skinned, petty insecurity with no respect for well-intentioned dissent."
The February 2024 denial of entry had already sparked controversy. At the time, immigration officials reportedly cited "orders from Delhi" without providing formal reasons, though Professor Kaul mentioned informal references to her past criticism of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). The Ministry of External Affairs had then responded by stating that the entry of foreign nationals into India is a "sovereign decision." Unofficial government sources had indicated that a "preventive lookout circular" was issued against her due to her alleged "pro-separatist" and "anti-India" stance on Kashmir.
The BJP in Karnataka had criticised the state government for inviting her, labelling her an "anti-India element." Conversely, the then-Karnataka government and various international human rights organizations and academic bodies had condemned the denial of entry.
Professor Kaul has been an outspoken commentator on Indian politics, including the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, and has testified before international bodies such as the US Congress on human rights in the region. She maintains her work is academic and pro-democracy, not anti-India.
The cancellation of her OCI card effectively bars her from entering India, a country to which she has personal and academic ties. This incident adds to a growing list of academics, journalists, and activists of Indian origin whose OCI status has been revoked or who have been denied entry to India in recent years, raising concerns about freedom of speech and dissent. Reports indicate that over 100 OCI cards were cancelled by the Indian government between 2014 and May 2023. Furthermore, in 2021, new rules were introduced requiring OCI cardholders to obtain special permission for activities such as research and journalism.
