Just when it seemed that the IPL had got a lifeline and a fighting chance at being held on time, there is a new obstacle.

The sources in the Home Ministry have now said that it will base its final decision about holding the IPL on “an overall security assessment” and on the fact that how many states are willing to handle security arrangements on their own because after the Lahore attack, security is the big concern for the Centre.

On Thursday, claiming that state security was enough, the ministry forwarded a BCCI letter to the top police officials of the states asking if they could provide security.

Sources said that the whole controversy took a new turn when some states asked the Centre for troops. And that is the tricky part.

The Home Minister had already made it clear that he can’t pull out any of the 75,000 troops from election duty or any others from the Pakistan and Bangladesh borders.

The IPL stakeholders and even the BCCI argue that they don’t need permission from the Centre and they are willing to reschedule some match dates but have refused to postpone the tournament till after the elections.

Some states like Punjab have said that they can provide security to IPL matches but only if they don’t give their personnel to the Centre for election duty. Thus, that may not be an option.

However, West Bengal has said that even the re-scheduled matches aren’t acceptable.

So, the Centre now has to take the final decision whether India’s biggest cricket tournament can be safely held along with the biggest political event, the general elections
Source:ndtv.com