New Delhi: Continuing with its step-by-step examination of the conflict of interest issue implied in the way the cricket control board’s showpiece Indian Premier League T20 tournament has been run, the Supreme Court on Tuesday sought a list of administrators and players with commercial interest in the IPL and the Champions League T20.
The two-member bench of Justices T.S. Thakur and F.M.I. Kalifulla also asked the Board of Control for Cricket in India to justify how its officials could wear more than one hat as administrators and team owners the thrust clearly being on president-in-exile N. Srinivasan.“BCCI needs to take it out of their minds that Supreme Court can’t adjudicate on BCCI rules. Those aren’t sacrosanct for us. You have to satisfy us as far as Rule 6.2.4 is concerned,” the judges said.
Clause 6.2.4 was amended to allow BCCI office-bearers to also have a stake in the IPL, thanks to which Mr Srinivasan’s India Cements was permitted to become a team owner. “For the purity of the game, if conflict of interest has to go, it will go. Heavens will not fall if administrators don’t own teams. If the team goes, projects will not fall,” Justices Thakur and Kalifulla said.
“Apart from CSK, is there any other team which is run by an administrator, and why? Give us a list of all contracts which will fall because of striking down Rule 6.2.4,” the court said.
In an unprecedented display of its continuing interest in the matter, the apex court also said it would continue to hear arguments in the case for a third straight day.
Appearing for former BCCI president I.S. Bindra, Mr Rajeev Dhawan said, “This clause needs to be examined. This is the heart of the problem. If this is not dealt with, then all the problems will remain unaddressed.” On Monday, Mr Dhawan said it was the amendment to Clause 6.2.4 that was “responsible for the mess we are in since 2008”.
