New Delhi, 29 April

Rajasthan Royals captain Riyan Parag has courted controversy after TV cameras caught him "vaping" in the dressing room during his team's Indian Premier League game against Punjab Kings in Mullanpur.

The Indian government had banned e-cigarettes back in 2019, prohibiting their production, sale and distribution. As per the law, the offender faces imprisonment up to one year and/or a Rs one lakh fine for a first-time offence.

Parag, who has not had the best of times with the bat this IPL, was seen inhaling an e-cigarette, also known as vaping, in the dressing room during the live broadcast of their game against Punjab Kings on Tuesday night.

The act caught on camera triggered an immediate reaction on social media. Parag made a 16-ball 29 in his team's successful chase of 223.

IPL and BCCI officials involved in the conduct of the IPL termed it a careless act in the age of social media and prying TV cameras.

"A lot of players consume e-cigarettes, but they don't do it in the dressing room. It is too risky and careless to be doing that with so many cameras around. With Parag caught vaping so openly, the BCCI might be forced to act," said a well-placed IPL source.

No Rajasthan Royals team official was available for a comment.

This is not the first controversy to hit the Royals this season. Earlier this month, team manager Romi Bhinder was fined Rs one lakh for breaching PMOA protocol after being found using his phone in the dugout.

Dressing room privacy raised at IPL Captains Meeting

Another IPL source told PTI the issue of players' privacy in the dressing room was raised at the Captains' Meeting in Mumbai ahead of IPL 2026. Some of the captains had raised an objection to cameras panning to the dressing room during the live broadcast.

"It was not specifically related to the use of e-cigarettes in the dressing room. It was broadly around their players' privacy. There are times when players are not fully dressed in the dressing room or may want to avoid cameras.

"They were told that it is up to the broadcaster and not the BCCI to decide on cameras showing the feed from the dressing room. After this incident, it may be reviewed.

"Having said that, it was careless from Parag, and it is difficult to defend something like this. An elite athlete caught smoking like this is not setting a good example for the public," said the source.

As per the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Act (PECA) 2019, "no person shall, directly or indirectly, (i) produce or manufacture or import or export or transport or sell or distribute electronic cigarettes, whether as a complete product or any part thereof; and(ii) advertise electronic cigarettes or take part in any advertisement that directly or indirectly promotes the use of electronic cigarettes.

"...no person, being the owner or occupier or having the control or use of any place, shall knowingly permit it to be used for storage of any stock of electronic cigarettes."

As per John Hopkins Medicine, vaping is injurious to health, though it may not be as harmful as smoking a cigarette.

"Nicotine is the primary agent in regular cigarettes and e-cigarettes, and it is highly addictive. It causes you to crave a smoke and suffer withdrawal symptoms if you ignore the craving.

"Nicotine is a toxic substance. It raises your blood pressure and spikes your adrenaline, which increases your heart rate and the likelihood of having a heart attack," states an expert column on the John Hopkins Medicine website.