BCCI reforms stay till Parl enacts law: SC

NEW DELHI: The writing on the wall became clear for the BCCI with the Supreme Court on Friday saying it would force the cricket board to implement most of the radical reforms recommended by the Justice RM Lodha panel.
Worse, the court said it would clarify in its judgment that reforms implemented in the functioning of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) would hold good till Parliament enacted a law to regulate cricket management.
A bench of Chief Justice TS Thakur and FMI Kalifulla said, “Our directions for implementation of reforms in the BCCI will remain in force till Parliament enacts a legislation. We will say so in our judgment.“ Appearing for Tamil Nadu Cricket Associ ation, senior advocate Arvind Datar said it was incongruous for the SC to force reforms in a private association that would set off a chain reaction forcing all association members to change their bylaws to keep their BCCI membership intact.
The bench asked a simple question and provided the answer too. “Can you tell which of the Lodha panel recommendations are perverse and unimplementable? All of you agreed that the recommendations are good, well-meaning and made in good faith. What is the harm in implementing them? If the recommendations are not outrageous, then let them be implemented,“ it said.
Datar attempted to sidestep the unplayable delivery by drawing the court's attention to the similar state of affairs in other sports bodies like badminton, kabbadi and table tennis. The bench said, “We have not shut our door for reforms in those associations. But cricket has altogether a different dimension in India. That is why we took up the issue and entrusted Justice RM Lodha panel to suggest reforms.“
Datar said the court started with betting and spot-fixing in IPL 2013 but had now gone into reforms in the entire structure. “This is like a doctor detecting a tumour in a body and then, while removing it, slashing and bruising the entire body ,“ he said.
The bench was caustic in its response. “Spotfixing and betting were only symptoms of a dreaded disease deep inside the BCCI. That is why the Lodha panel was set up to diagnose the disease and suggest remedial measures. It has now suggested remedial measures,“ it said.
Appearing for Orissa Cricket Association, senior advocate K V Vishwanathan took the much beaten track to oppose radical reforms in BCCI saying it would amount to rewriting the bylaws of a private association governed by the Tamil Nadu Societies Act and it would have a ripple effect on all state associations.
Appearing for Sports Promotion Boards of Services and Railways, additional solicitor general Maninder Singh said the Lodha panel's one state-one vote recommendation should not affect the membership of Services and Railways in BCCI. “These two are founder members and recruit thousands of sportspersons including cricketers cutting across state boundaries and nurture them while giving them a chance to play at the national level. These two bodies do not draw a single penny from the BCCI yet have created infrastructure in many states. Why should they be deprived of vote in BCCI and consequently of a say in the decision-making process,“ he said.