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By:

Bhalchandra Chorghade

11 August 2025 at 1:54:18 pm

Applause for Cricket, Silence for Badminton

Mumbai: When Lakshya Sen walked off the court after the final of the All England Badminton Championships, he carried with him the disappointment of another near miss. The Indian shuttler went down in straight games to Lin Chun-Yi, who created history by becoming the first player from Chinese Taipei to lift the prestigious title. But the story of Lakshya Sen’s defeat is not merely about badminton final. It is also about the contrasting way India celebrates its sporting heroes. Had the same...

Applause for Cricket, Silence for Badminton

Mumbai: When Lakshya Sen walked off the court after the final of the All England Badminton Championships, he carried with him the disappointment of another near miss. The Indian shuttler went down in straight games to Lin Chun-Yi, who created history by becoming the first player from Chinese Taipei to lift the prestigious title. But the story of Lakshya Sen’s defeat is not merely about badminton final. It is also about the contrasting way India celebrates its sporting heroes. Had the same narrative unfolded on a cricket field, the reaction would have been dramatically different. In cricket, even defeat often becomes a story of heroism. A hard-fought loss by the Indian team can dominate television debates, fill newspaper columns and trend across social media for days. A player who narrowly misses a milestone is still hailed for his fighting spirit. The nation rallies around its cricketers not only in victory but also in defeat. The narrative quickly shifts from the result to the effort -- the resilience shown, the fight put up, the promise of future triumph. This emotional investment is one of the reasons cricket enjoys unparalleled popularity in India. It has built a culture where players become household names and their performances, good or bad, become part of the national conversation. Badminton Fights Contrast that with what happens in sports like badminton. Reaching the final of the All England Championships is a monumental achievement. The tournament is widely considered badminton’s equivalent of Wimbledon in prestige and tradition. Only the very best players manage to reach its final stages, and doing it twice speaks volumes about Lakshya Sen’s ability and consistency. Yet the reaction in India remained largely subdued. There were congratulatory posts, some headlines acknowledging the effort and brief discussions among badminton enthusiasts. But the level of national engagement never quite matched the magnitude of the achievement. In a cricketing context, reaching such a stage would have triggered days of celebration and analysis. In badminton, it often becomes just another sports update. Long Wait India’s wait for an All England champion continues. The last Indian to win the title was Pullela Gopichand in 2001. Before him, Prakash Padukone had scripted history in 1980. These victories remain among the most significant milestones in Indian badminton. And yet, unlike cricketing triumphs that are frequently revisited and celebrated, such achievements rarely stay in the mainstream sporting conversation for long. Lakshya Sen’s journey to the final should ideally have been viewed as a continuation of that legacy, a reminder that India still possesses the talent to challenge the world’s best in badminton. Instead, it risks fading quickly from public memory. Visibility Gap The difference ultimately comes down to visibility and cultural investment. Cricket in India is not merely a sport; it is an ecosystem built over decades through media attention, sponsorship, and mass emotional attachment. Individual sports, on the other hand, often rely on momentary bursts of recognition, usually during Olympic years or when a medal is won. But consistent performers like Lakshya Sen rarely receive the sustained spotlight that their achievements deserve. This disparity can also influence the next generation. Young athletes are naturally drawn to sports where success brings recognition, financial stability and national fame. When one sport monopolises the spotlight, others struggle to build similar appeal. Beyond Result Lakshya Sen may have finished runner-up again, but his performance at the All England Championship is a reminder that India continues to produce world-class athletes in disciplines beyond cricket. The real issue is not that cricket receives immense attention -- it deserves the admiration it gets. The concern is that athletes from other sports often do not receive comparable appreciation for achievements that are equally significant in their own arenas. If India aspires to become a truly global sporting nation, its applause must grow broader. Sporting pride cannot remain confined to one field. Because somewhere on a badminton court, an athlete like Lakshya Sen is fighting just as hard for the country’s colours as any cricketer on a packed stadium pitch. The only difference is how loudly the nation chooses to cheer.

Cash-discovery row: Delhi HC CJ's report, police video prompt CJI to set up in-house inquiry panel

  • PTI
  • Mar 23, 2025
  • 4 min read


New Delhi: A video shared by the police commissioner of burnt wads of cash at Justice Yashwant Varma's residence and preliminary findings of the Delhi High Court chief justice calling for a "deeper probe" have prompted Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna to constitute a committee to conduct an in-house inquiry into the allegations against the judge.


In an unprecedented move, the top court, late on Saturday evening, uploaded on its website the inquiry report of Delhi High Court Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya -- complete with photos and videos -- regarding the alleged discovery of a substantial amount of cash from the residence of Justice Varma, a judge in the high court.


Justice Upadhyaya's report to the CJI contains material with regard to official communication that says four to five semi-burnt sacks of Indian currency notes were found from the judge's Lutyens' Delhi residence.


"On examining the incident reported, the material available and the response of Justice Yashwant Varma, what I find is that the Commissioner of Police in his report dated March 16, 2025 has reported that as per the guard posted at the residence of Justice Yashwant Varma, the debris and other partially-burnt articles were removed from the room where the fire had broken out in the morning of March 15, 2025....


"Accordingly, I am of the prima facie opinion that the entire matter warrants a deeper probe," Justice Upadhyaya has said said in his report dated March 21 and made public on Saturday evening.


The three-member inquiry committee formed by the CJI consists of Justices Sheel Nagu (Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court), G S Sandhawalia (Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court) and Karnataka High Court judge Anu Sivaraman.


"The Chief Justice of the High Court of Delhi for the time being has been asked not to assign any judicial work to Mr Justice Yashwant Varma," the top court said in a statement on Saturday.


However, no timeline has been fixed for the three-member inquiry committee to conclude the probe.


The 25-page inquiry report of Justice Upadhyaya, uploaded on the apex court's website, contains two short notes in Hindi that mention that after the fire at the storeroom of Justice Varma's residence on March 14 was doused, four to five half-burnt sacks containing currency notes were found. The report said prima facie, it seemed that a short-circuit had led to the fire.


The video, also shared by Delhi Police Commissioner Sanjay Arora with Justice Upadhyaya, clearly shows burnt cash and fire fighters dousing the flames.


Justice Varma has, in his response, strongly denounced the allegations in the currency-discovery row and said no cash was ever placed in the storeroom either by him or any of his family members.


In his response submitted to the Delhi High Court chief justice, Justice Varma has said the allegation of cash discovery from his residence clearly appears to be a conspiracy to frame and malign him.


"It was during our meeting at the High Court Guesthouse that I was first shown the video and other photographs, which had been shared with you by the Commissioner of Police. I was totally shocked to see the contents of the video since that depicted something which was not found on site as I had seen it.


"It was this which prompted me to observe that this clearly appeared to be a conspiracy to frame and malign me," Justice Varma has said in his written response to Justice Upadhyaya, who was tasked by the CJI with conducting an inquiry into the entire episode.


Justice Varma filed his reply after the Delhi High Court chief justice sought his response pursuant to an in-house probe initiated by the CJI.


He also said the media should have conducted some enquiry before making allegations and defaming him. Justice Varma said he was not aware of any money or cash lying in the outhouse storeroom.


"Neither I nor any of my family members had any knowledge of cash nor does it have any bearing or relation with me or my family. No such cash or currency was shown to my family members or staff who were present on that fateful night.


"I also strongly deny and outrightly reject the insinuation if made, that we removed currency from the storeroom. As stated above, we were neither shown nor handed over any sacks of burnt currency. In fact, and as stated above, the limited debris which was sought to be salvaged continues to exist in one part of the residence," the judge said.


Narrating the incident, Justice Varma said a fire broke out in the storeroom situated near the staff quarters of his official residence in the intervening night of March 14 and 15.


He said this room was generally utilised by all and sundry to store articles, such as unused furniture, bottles, crockery, mattresses, used carpets, old speakers, garden implements as well as CPWD material.


"At the cost of repetition, I unequivocally state that neither I nor any of my family members had stored or kept any cash or currency in that storeroom at any point of time. Our cash withdrawals, made from time to time, are all documented and always through regular banking channels, the use of UPI applications and cards. Insofar as the allegation of the recovery of cash, I once again make it clear that no one from my house ever reported seeing any currency in burnt form in the room," he said in his response.

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