Independent audit, BCCI funds frozen

R Sedhuraman

Legal Correspondent

New Delhi, October 21

The Supreme Court today placed the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) virtually under the Justice RM Lodha committee, ordering scrutiny of the board’s income and expenditure by an independent auditor, and freezing funds to the state units as part of five additional directives to reform the game’s administration.

A three-member Bench headed by Chief Justice TS Thakur extended till December 3 the deadline for completing the reform recommendations. It directed BCCI president Anurag Thakur and secretary Ajay Shirke to meet the committee before November 3 and file their compliance report by December 3.

It rejected BCCI’s plea that the board would implement the reforms only after exhausting its legal options. “A party to litigation cannot be heard to say that it would treat a judgment of this court as not having binding effect unless the review or curative petitions it has filed are dismissed.”

The Bench ruled that the Lodha panel would appoint the independent auditor, while BCCI’s contracts and the tendering process would be subject to the panel’s approval. Justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud are the other members of the Bench.

“BCCI shall forthwith cease and desist from making any disbursement of funds for any purpose whatsoever to any state association until and unless the state association concerned adopts a resolution undertaking to implement the recommendations of the committee as accepted by this court in its July 18 judgment,” the Bench ruled.

The panel would determine whether a proposed contract above the threshold value should or should not be approved. It would be at liberty to formulate the terms of engagement and reference to the auditors. The court clarified it had issued additional directives as there was no change in BCCI’s position.