Patna, April 7: BJP MP and also the member of the 1983 cricket World Cup team Kirti Azad today slammed RJD chief Lalu Prasad and accused him of making the cricket ambience in Bihar pathetic.

Speaking at a news meet at Azad Bhavan, the MP said: “If somebody asks me who is that one person responsible for making the cricketing ambience pathetic in Bihar, I would say it is none other than Lalu Prasad. He has ruined the future of cricket in Bihar in his 15-year-tenure. The condition for playing cricket has worsened in the state and this is the reason why good players are leaving Bihar in search of better opportunities.”

Taking a dig at Leader of Opposition Abdul Bari Siddiqui’s comment against Nitish Kumar — who had said politicians should not enter cricketing bodies as it maligns the essence of sports, to which Siddiqui had replied that the chief minister is not aware of the ABCD of cricket — Azad said that the Leader of Opposition’s comment does not hold any weight.

Citing the example of Siddiqui, who is also the convener of Bihar Cricket Association (BCA), Azad said: “Can someone tell me what did he do for sports when his government ruled Bihar for almost 15 years. Siddiqui was the sports minister then and he did not do anything for sports in the state. He is now talking about cricket being neglected in Bihar. He does not have any right to say this and it’s disappointing to see that the man (Nitish) who wants to do something for sports is being criticised.”

Azad, who is also the president of Association of Bihar Cricket (ABC) said: “I fail to understand why Siddiqui is talking about elections in the BCA. How can it be possible when the association is not even recognised by the BCCI. There is no issue of talking about elections. There is always an internal conflict in the association and a few cases have been lodged by the Under-14 players at the Agamkuan police station.”

The former cricketer added: “On December 12, 2008, BCA’s registration was cancelled and criminal cases are pending against members of the BCA in the Patna High Court. BCCI had given Rs 50 lakh to the BCA and that money has been used for vested interest. Many criminal cases have been lodged against the members of the association. Since the foundation of ABC in 2001, we have been organising many sporting events like Under-14, 17, 19 tournaments and also for the senior boys.”