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Riyan Parag has found himself at the center of a major controversy after TV cameras caught the Rajasthan Royals captain vaping in the dressing room during Tuesday night’s IPL 2026 clash against Punjab Kings at Mullanpur.

The images went viral almost immediately and as per latest cricket news the fallout has been swift, BCCI and IPL officials are now under pressure to take disciplinary action against a captain who was caught doing something that is not only against tournament regulations but also illegal under Indian law.

IPL 2026: What happened during the PBKS vs RR match

The video was recorded during the live telecast on the 16th over when Rajasthan chased their target of 223 successfully, with Riyan Parag observed taking the e-cigarette while sitting in the changing room along with his teammates such as Dhruv Jurel and Yashasvi Jaiswal.

Riyan Parag made 29 off 16 balls in a chase that RR completed by six wickets to hand Punjab their first defeat of the 2026 season, but the on-field result was quickly overshadowed by the off-field controversy.

The regulatory problem that makes this serious

This is not simply a matter of poor optics or bad judgment in the age of social media and prying cameras, though it is certainly both of those things.

India’s Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Act 2019 bans the production, sale, distribution and public use of e-cigarettes outright. A first-time offense under PECA carries a penalty of up to one year imprisonment and or a fine of up to one lakh rupees.

Separately, the IPL Code of Conduct strictly prohibits smoking and vaping in dressing rooms and stadium dugouts. Riyan Parag has potentially breached both simultaneously and in full view of a national broadcast audience.

An IPL source told PTI that while many players consume e-cigarettes, doing so in the dressing room with cameras present was reckless in the extreme. “With Riyan Parag caught vaping so openly, the BCCI might be forced to act,” the source said.

Riyan Parag faces possible action from BCCI after being seen vaping

A source told PTI that the issue of players’ privacy in the dressing room had actually been raised at the Captains Meeting in Mumbai before the start of IPL 2026, with some captains objecting to cameras regularly panning to the dressing room during live broadcasts. They were told at the time that such decisions were the broadcaster’s to make rather than the BCCI’s.

That conversation is now likely to be revisited in the wake of Tuesday’s incident. However, the same source was clear that Riyan Parag’s conduct was difficult to defend regardless of the privacy question. “It was careless from Riyan 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,” the source said.

The criticism around the public example being set has been particularly pointed given that Riyan Parag was sitting in the same dressing room as 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, the youngest and most high-profile youngster in the tournament.

This is also not the first controversy to hit Rajasthan this season, team manager Romi Bhinder was fined one lakh rupees earlier this month for using his phone in the dugout in breach of PMOA protocol.

Rajasthan Royals captain’s form makes the timing even worse

The controversy could not have come at a more difficult time for Riyan Parag personally. He has been struggling badly with the bat in IPL 2026, 117 runs from nine matches at an average of just 14.62 in a season where his captaincy was supposed to be the defining story of his development as a leader.

Tuesday’s 29 off 16 balls was one of his better returns of the season and came in a winning cause, but the headlines from Mullanpur are not about the result or his contribution to it.

The BCCI has not yet issued an official statement and no Rajasthan Royals team official was available for comment when PTI approached the franchise. Given the dual regulatory breach, IPL regulations and Indian law, some form of official response from the board appears inevitable.