MUMBAI: A controversy surrounding the use of a mobile phone in the Rajasthan Royals team area has intensified, with the matter now reaching the BCCI’s Anti-Corruption Unit. On Monday, the board’s ACU issued a notice to Rajasthan Royals manager Romi Bhinder after a report that he used a phone from within the team dugout during RR’s IPL 2026 match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at Guwahati last Friday. Bhinder has been given 48 hours to respond and provide his explanation to the ACU.
The development has been linked to a specific provision under the PMOA protocol displayed on the BCCI’s official platform. The clause makes a clear distinction between permitted and restricted areas, stating that a team manager may use a mobile phone in the dressing room but is not allowed to do so in the dugout.
In its probe, the ACU is focusing on whether the manager took the phone into an area that was not designated for such use. The board’s ACU has sought clarity on whether Bhinder brought the device into the restricted zone, especially given that the protocol allows certain personnel to carry their phones during the match. As described under the guidelines, both the team manager and the team doctor are permitted to have their mobiles, but the question here is whether the device was taken to a place where it should not have been used.
Debajit Saikia, the BCCI secretary, said the case is currently at the fact-finding stage. He noted that the ACU has begun an investigation and is attempting to verify whether any protocol was breached or any rule was violated, and whether Bhinder took the phone to a location where it was not supposed to be taken. “It’s a fact-finding exercise,” Saikia added.
The scrutiny has grown stronger after a viral clip drew attention to the moment in question. In the footage, Rajasthan Royals opener Vaibhav Sooryavanshi—seated next to Bhinder—appears to glance at the phone during the course of play, prompting further questions about what exactly was happening in the dugout at the time.
