'Host' Pawar books choicest WC seats for 250 ministers and babus

MUMBAI: The week-long cold war between the revenue department and the Mumbai Cricket Association ( MCA) over distribution of tickets for the April 2 World Cup cricket final at Wankhede stadium, to chief minister Prithviraj Chavan, his cabinet colleagues and senior bureaucrats was resolved on Tuesday. The resolution followed intervention from ICC president and agriculture minister Sharad Pawar.

According to the earlier agreement reached between MCA and the revenue department, which has been entrusted with the responsibility of distributing the tickets, MCA was to release 250 complimentary tickets for individuals nominated by the state government. While MCA did issue the tickets, the seats in question were "inconvenient" and did not offer a clear view of the field. "We made it clear to MCA office bearers that the state government will not accept such tickets.If at all MCA is keen on issuing tickets, it must ensure that the dignity of cabinet members and bureaucrats is maintained. In fact, we had returned all the tickets to MCA. However, following intervention from Sharad Pawar, the row was resolved," a senior bureaucrat told TOI.

As per the new formula, all the cabinet members and their family members will now be "guests" of Sharad Pawar; tickets issued to bureaucrats will be upgraded too. "We have been told that special tickets will be issued for cabinet members, who will be accommodated in the special box. Babus too have been upgraded to prime seats," the bureaucrat said.

Of the 250 tickets, bureaucrats said, 10 would go to CM's family, 10 to deputy CM Ajit Pawar, five to sports minister Padmakar Valvi, four to chief secretary Ratnakar Gaikwad and two for each cabinet member and babus of the rank of secretary and above. Significantly, Ratnakar Gaikwad told the revenue department he was not keen on complimentary tickets.