Sachin Tendulkar is an Indian cricketer widely regarded as one of the greatest batsmen in the history of cricket. He is the leading run-scorer and century maker in Test and One Day International cricket. In 2002, Wisden ranked him the second greatest Test batsman of all time, next to Donald Bradman, and the second greatest one day international (ODI) batsman of all time, next to Viv Richards. Tendulkar was the only player of the current generation to be included in Bradman's Eleven. He is sometimes referred to as Little Master or Master Blaster. Tendulkar is the highest run scorer in both Test matches and ODIs, and also the batsman with the most centuries in either form of the game. The first player to score fifty centuries in all international cricket combined, he now has eighty-seven international centuries. Tendulkar has been honored with the Padma Vibhushan award, India's second highest civilian award, and the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award, India's highest sporting honor. - Wikipedia

36 years of age, 20 years of international cricket and one of the best cricketers in the world. Some fans claim, "Cricket is a religion and Sachin is my God". Speaking to Bar & Bench, Sachin’s Lawyer Harish Jagtiani of DM Harish & Co says “Sachin is a mature beyond his age, one of the finest person I have met. His principles are very clearand is a thorough professional”. However, Sachin Tendulkar has not been far from legal tussles and controversies.

It started with the import of a Ferrari 360 Modena in 2002, which was supposed to have been gifted by Michael Schumacher and Fiat, the owners of Ferrari. There was even some confusion about whether the gift was meant to mark his 100^th test match or for having equalled Sir Don Bradman's record of 29 Test centuries. Then Union Minister for Communication, Pramod Mahajan had the Finance Minister, Jaswant Singh grant a waiver under Section 25 of the Customs Act, which allows the Centre to grant duty exemptions in public interest. The law exempted payment of duty for a prize that is announced for a winner of a sports tournament. Multiple PILs were filed at the Delhi High Court and the Bombay High Court and by an NRI at the Kerala High Court. Mumbai based advocate V.M. Bharadwaj led the battle against the exemption.

Jaswant Singh, speaking to the media had then said, "There was no championship, but equaling Sir Don Bradman's record of 29 centuries is [a] landmark achievement. The spirit of the exemption notification is that the prize should reflect a landmark achievement. The duty exemption may therefore be granted." The law was amended for Sachin and the amended section Section 25 gave the Government sweeping powers to allow customs duty exemptions on a case-to-case basis.

In the Delhi High Court, Justice Vikramjit Sen summoned the ace cricketer, the Board of Control for Cricket in India, the Union Ministry of Finance and the Union Ministry of Sports to answer the issue. Delhi High Court advocate Arjun Bhandari, was appointed as the amicus curiae in the matter. With the media highlighting the Sports ministry's refusal to increase the number of Arjuna awards due to financial constraints at the same time, Justice Sen said, "this exemplifies profligacy in spending in connection with cricket and parsimony where other sports are concerned." Justice Sen, referring to an R.K. Lakshman cartoon said, "[his] inimitable tongue-in-cheek style has depicted an old man blessing a child wielding a willow - 'may you become a super-player and may the finance ministry exempt all your income from soft drinks, toilet soaps, toothpastes from tax'."

The issue finally reached the Supreme Court, with the then Attorney General, Soli Sorabjee, arguing for the Union Government. With media attention and controversy surrounding the import of the Ferrari, Fiat agreed to pay the duty of over Rs. 82 lakhs on Sachin's behalf. A three-Judge Bench, comprising of the then Chief Justice V.N. Khare and Justices S.B. Sinha and S.H. Kapadia dismissed the petition.

In 2003, Sachin was embroiled in a consultancy fees dispute with his Chartered Accountant, Madhav S. Bhatkhande. Sachin Tendulkar had accused MSB & Co. of 'professional misconduct'. Harish Jagtiani of DM Harish & Co. appeared for Tendulkar and S.N. Inamdar appeared on behalf of MSB & Co. ICAI ruled against Tendulkar, leading to his first dismissal.

He courted more controversy, when in 2007 he reportedly cut a cake with icing in the colours and shape of the national flag in West Indies. An Indore based local leader affiliated to the Bhartiya Janshakti (BJS), Rajesh Bidkar, filed a petition against Tendulkar for cutting the cake. A complaint was filed under the Prevention of Insult to the National Honour Act in Indore. Bidkar was represented by his advocate Rajendra Sharma. The petition was rejected by the Indore Court as the Centre's permission was required to proceed with the case, since the incident had occurred in a foreign country.

In May this year, a Sessions Judge in Delhi heard final arguments against Harkat-ul-Jehadi Islami (HUJI) terrorists based out of Pakistan for plotting to kidnap Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly. These terrorists were booked under POTA, IPC and the Explosives Act, all of which provide for capital punishment.

While legal bouncers may not quite be his cup of tea, Tendulkar continues to be the chief god for the religion known as cricket. His straight drive still thrills a billion people, each one hoping to see him lift the 2011 World Cup, and then 2015 and 2019 and so on....