Reports | BCCI expenditure in battle against CoA amounts to roughly 350 crores
The Board of Control for Cricket in India has reportedly spent a total of 350 crores from its annual budget in the ongoing tussle for power against Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators. The legal team charges a huge sum of Rs 25 lakh just for an appearance at a scheduled hearing.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India or BCCI is said to be one of the richest sporting bodies across the globe. That being said, reports in TOI have revealed that the Indian body have reportedly spent a massive 350 crores in their ongoing struggle of power against the Committee of Administrators (CoA).
The Supreme Court had finalised the Lodha reforms in 2016 but many state associations are yet to implement them. The two governing bodies - BCCI and CoA - have constantly been at loggerheads ever since the latter was formed and an insider source told TOI about just how much cash has been spent to sustain the power struggle.
"In the last three years, the board has spent Rs 350 crores on legal fees on this issue. This must be the only litigation in the world in which the expense of both parties, the litigant as well as the respondent, is being borne by the same organization - the BCCI in this case. It's a unique litigation case, a sort of a world record," a source in the BCCI told TOI.
The source further added that the legal team lawyers are reportedly charging Rs 25 lakh for an appearance, regardless of whether the hearing is adjourned or not.
"The BCCI's legal affairs are handled by Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas. The Committee of Administrators (CoA) is represented by its lawyers Parag Tripathi and CU Singh. Apart from bearing their expense, the BCCI is also paying for the legal fee of the office-bearers - the acting secretary, acting president and the treasurer, who are resisting the reforms. The office-bearers are represented in the SC by Puneet Bali.
"The 34 state associations, many of whom are still stalling the reforms, are also paying their legal fee out of the grants that they have received from the BCCI over the years. Put together, these state associations have engaged close to 150 lawyers (who are indirectly being paid by the BCCI), who have filed around 100 Intervening Applications (IAs) to contest the Lodha reforms in the apex court," said a board official.
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