Justice Lodha panel submits report to SC for reforms in BCCI

Former Chief Justice of India, R.M. Lodha, submitted his report on the various aspects of reforms in the BCCI to the Supreme Court .

The report culminates the panel’s exhaustive investigations into how the game is run in the country and what could be done to ensure that transparency and accountability is the rule and not the exception in the administration of cricket in India.

A look into the unfolding of Spot fixing case:

Lodha was assigned with three tasks:

1. Deciding the quantum of punishment for the tainted Indian Premier League franchises Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals,

2. Recommending administrative reforms

3. Deciding the fate of the tainted former Indian Premier League Chief Operating Officer Sundar Raman.(The committee gave a clean chit to former IPL COO Sundar Raman on allegations of his involvement in the 2013 IPL betting controversy)

A section-by-section analysis:

1.One State, One Member, One Unit:

The strange case of one Indian state (Maharashtra) possessing three separate associations (with each association possessing separate voting rights to boot), while some other states such as Bihar and Chhattisgarh having none.

The BCCI consists of 30 Full Members, some of whom do not field teams, while others do not represent any territory. Twenty states and one Union Territory are included, while ten states and six Union Territories remain either excluded or disenfranchised. In addition, officially there are Associate and Affiliate Members as well as so-called Future Members.

In its place, the panel recommended that the principle of one state, one unit and one vote should be followed where each state should have one vote.

Disbursement of BCCI funds and participation of associations within domestic tournaments could continue similarly as earlier.

2.Decentralisation of the BCCI:

The concentration of all powers within one office, that of the President, is an anathema, as the Lodha panel rightly pointed out.

All the powers instituted within the President are to be distributed across a newly-constituted governing body called the Apex Council.

Apart from the president, vice-president and other such office-bearers, the panel has recommended that the Council must also consist of one female Councillor, one representative of a newly-constituted players association and also from the office of the Comptroller & Auditor General of India.

3.Cleaning IPL:

The panel suggested reconstituting the IPL Governing Council, with representatives from the franchises, the players’ association and the CAG office.

Not just that, the policy of having Indian players turn out for IPL franchises just days after playing international commitments was largely criticised with the panel recommending that the BCCI should ensure at least a 15-day gap between the IPL and the national cricketing calendar.

4.Players at Spotlight:

Suggested a Steering Committee comprising of past players like GK Pillai, Mohinder Amarnath, Anil Kumble and Diana Edulji to be established to start the process.

The other key point in this chapter was the registration of player agents. 

5.Transparency:

The chapter ends by recommending that the Indian cricket body be more transparent in dealings by putting up records of all important information on its official websites and calls on the Indian legislature to seriously consider bringing the BCCI under the purview of the Right to Information Act.

6. Legalise betting, penalise match-fixing:

The report makes clear that the issue of betting could be dealt by providing a legal framework, it draws a suitably hard line on match-fixing and spot-fixing, describing it as interfering with the “integrity of the game” and attempting to change the course of a match by some players to only benefit a few.

recognised the need to spread more awareness about malpractices within the game’s younger exponents.

“Financial insecurity, short professional career and huge disparity in the contract money paid to different classes of players are some of the factors which tempt players towards malpractices. While reputed or glamorous players, particularly those with international exposure have huge incomes, the position of other national players, let alone fringe players, is not very rosy. Equally disturbing is the trend of young players suddenly exposed to riches by way of IPL not being suitably guided on responsible conduct, with the result that in order to maintain their extravagant lifestyles, they are lured into misadventures in the form of betting and match/spot-fixing. Attention should be bestowed by BCCI to give education about ethics and financial management to youngsters and to secure the post-cricket life of all players.”

At Last : The nature of the BCCI’s existence:

The report criticises the nature of the existence of the BCCI’s various state associations, pointing out that the majority of its members are located under the Societies Registration Act of 1860 while some state associations are registered under the provisions of the Companies Act, leading to no uniformity in their structure and functioning.

The report points out the flawed system of ticket allocation in the country and proxy voting.

solution :

The state associations must pull up their game and ensure that there is uniformity in their functioning and professionalism in their management.