Mumbai: Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) was handed an ultimatum by the Supreme Court of India to implement the reforms suggested by RM Lodha committee. The hard hitting Supreme Court has ordered the BCCI to give an undertaking by Friday to shape up or ship out.
“Stop wasting time. Give an undertaking that you will abide by the recommendations or we will pass an order,” Chief Justice of India TS Thakur said. The court will go on a leave for the Puja vacation this weekend and will reopen on October 17th.
The Supreme Court could give an extension of deadline to BCCI to implement all the reforms of Lodha committee or form a committee that will supersede the current BCCI officials and execute the reforms. In either case, BCCI’s back is against the wall.
The Supreme Court has also ordered BCCI not to give any funds to its affiliated units who are not willing to implement the committee’s reforms.
“Don’t disburse money to associations who are reluctant to be reformed. Why are you discussing money in a hurry?” the court asked. The BCCI has already given close to Rs. 400 crores to state units as infrastructural grants till September-end.
The court also hinted that BCCI instigated state units not to comprehend with the committee reforms. “You are in the forefront of defiance giving leads to the state associations… you are trying to oppose the Lodha panel.”
A defying BCCI is trying its entire means to deploy reforms suggested by the committee which were made binding on the board since July 18th. The Board failed to meet its first deadline of September 30th by which it had to implement the Memorandum of Association and rules.
While it has cherry-picked a few reforms, the BCCI had been steadfastly opposing the Lodha committee’s one-state-one-vote proposal, age and tenure caps, saying it was governed by the Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act, 1975 and not a Supreme Court-appointed committee.
The Lodha panel is against the policy of BCCI (which is currently composed of 30 affiliates) consisting of multiple voting units from Maharashtra and Gujarat.
The panel head, former Chief Justice of India, Rajendra M Lodha was not happy after BCCI conducted its Annual General Meeting (AGM) on September 21 and elected committee completely ignoring the committee’s recommendations. The panel swiftly lodged a status report in the Supreme Court for non-compliance.
“If the BCCI thinks that they are a law unto themselves, then they are wrong. They have to comply with the directions of the court,” the bench of judges headed by Chief Justice TS Thakur had said, adding: “Fall in line otherwise we will make you fall in line.”