The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) went into a huddle after the Supreme Court told it to “fall in line” and implement the Justice Lodha Committee recommendations. The board held a general meeting (SGM) in Mumbai on February 19 to discuss the Apex Court-appointed panel’s directives and has decided to give a detailed response based on the views of its members. The BCCI has directed its secretary Anurag Thakur to file an affidavit pointing out the "anomalies and difficulties" in implementing the recommendations. The BCCI has to respond to the court on the matter before March 3 and the board has also given its state affiliates liberty to file independent affidavits if they so wish.
While the BCCI has maintained that it has no reservations in implementing the panel’s recommendations, it has reservations on several directives of the committee. Although the boarddid not elaborate on these anomalies, it’s clear that it will oppose suggestions pertaining to the eligibility of office-bearers, dissolving the associations and bringing in ‘one state, one vote’ policy and not holding positions simultaneously in both the state and national body, as in the case of board secretary Thakur, treasurer Aniruddh Chaudhary and joint secretary Amitabh Chaudhary.
Another contentious issue is not airing TV advertisements between overs and restrict it to showing only during innings, lunch and tea breaks during international matches. This will cause the BCCI to lose a huge chunk of revenue generated through broadcast rights and severely affect its functioning. The board argues that it only sells the telecast rights of the action, and not the time slots in between. It is the broadcaster who owns the commercial time and monetises it. It is a valid point on part of the board and if the recommendation is implemented it claims its revenue would fall by 70-75%, a big drop by any count. To avoid this, it is sure to exhaust all legal remedies before accepting it.
The proposal to have only one state body with voting rights is another thorny issue. Its implementation will adversely affect states which have multiple associations like Maharashtra and Baroda. In Maharashtra, cricket is run by three associations -- Maharashtra Cricket Association, Mumbai Cricket Association and Vidarbha Cricket Association. If the officials from these state units are up in arms, it is quite understandable. Similarly, Gujarat has three associations “ GCA, Saurashtra and Baroda. These are all self-sufficient independent bodies with rich history and legacy in cricket which have built their teams and own infrastructure over the years. Also, it will hand an unfair advantage, by way of their voting rights, to smaller units which have negligible contribution to cricket in India. For instance, excluding a few states, the north-east doesn’t produce much buzz for cricket. Depriving some deserving units voting right is sure to create fissures in Indian cricket.
On the other hand, there are things within the ambit of BCCI which it can be flexible in implementing and it has adopted certain measures to impress the court. The board, which had in the past refused to come under the RTI, has now agreed to do so. It has also decided to start the process of hiring a CEO and CFO, which is sure to bring more professionalism in its setup. For all its resistance, BCCI can only hope that the court gives it a chance to go back to the panel to address its concerns.
