It is not every day that the Indian cricket team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni is faced with a terse no. For a man accredited with bringing the Indian team to new highs of success and fame, this Jharkhand lad finally found one of his passions and dream, hit a dead end when a mandatory Intelligence report, sought before granting him an arms license, refused consent for the same as “Dhoni blows the lid in anger quite often”.
According to a media report I chanced upon today morning, based on the IB observation, Jammu district administration, where the application for an arms license was put up by Dhoni, subsequently denied the license to the Indian captain and youth icon because the IB had observed that “Mahi is a man who gets angry very easily and hence a weapon license might not be the best of things for company”.
Claiming that he sits on a short fuse, IB has asked the district administration vide a letter 7341, dated July 15, 2009, not to grant the weapon license for purchase of an arm to the Indian captain. The address shown by Dhoni in his aplication, as per the report, is sector 14-C Line, Ranchi, Jharkhand.
Snubbed thus, Dhoni has since written a letter to the ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) seeking its intervention. The MHA had earlier sought (vide letter 1124/2/2009) from IB and other inputs on the application by the ace sportstar. The report that came back to the MHA detailed how Dhoni was known to be on short fuse and got irritated more than often and hence a weapon with him was a hazard that should not be entertained.
It is learnt that Dhoni wants to buy a 9mm Beretta pistol for which he is seeking an arms license. Dhoni’s counsel SK Jhala has since written to the MHA seeking intervention of the mandarins in the ministry to ensure that the cricket star gets the weapon license. But more than the developments what baffles me is the need for Dhoni to have a personal firearm.
It cannot be for the purpose of self defence and protection since he is under Special Z plus cover provided by both the Jharkhand and union government. The arm at best can be a “passion or a status symbol” and hence it appears quite immature that a cricketing legend who has set standards for the sports and celebrities by his simplicity and ground to earth neature to bicker for something as irrelevant like a weapon!
Cricket is a religion in India and there are millions of followers of the sports and its stars, Mahi being the leading light. It is hence more imperitive on Dhoni that he gets his act together and rather than indulging in personal kinks like this sets exemplary examples before the new generation so that they emulate if any it is his approach, his hard work and commitment towards the sports and not share his passions for bike racing , loafing around sans secutiy at night on Ranchi roads and the kink for firepower!