Logo of BCCI [The BCCI logo is derived from the emblem of the Order of the Star of India, India’s highest order of chivalry during the British rule and also its Coat of Arms. Source: Wipipedia]
Having its headquarters in Mumbai, the BCCI is the national governing body for all cricket-related matches in India. Formed in 1928 as a replacement of Calcutta Cricket Club, the BCCI is registered as a society under the Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act. It is often described as a ‘private club consortium.’
By virtue of its membership of the International Cricket Council (ICC), the BCCI enjoys the authority of selecting players, umpires and officials to participate in international events and exercises total control over them. Without its recognition, no competitive cricket involving BCCI-contracted Indian players can be hosted within or outside the country.
Currently, the BCCI has 27 state association members and 3 non-playing members across five zones (viz. North Zone, South Zone, East Zone, West Zone and Central Zone) in India. It has recently established an inter-city cricket league, the Indian Premier League (IPL) in limited-overs and Twenty20 format, having been structured along the lines of other professional leagues such as the English Premier League, except without the relegations and promotions system as there are only eight official teams as of now.
Tax Evasion
The BCCI is reportedly world’s richest cricket body. According to recent report published in dailybhaskar.com, an RTI application has revealed BCCI owes a whopping Rs. 550 crore, maybe more, to Indian tax authorities. The pending tax arrears are for the period from assessment years 2006-07 to 2010-11, and the amount may swell considerably as tax-demands may be pending for earlier years also for which data is not made available. Besides, what comes across as a rather strange finding, the Income Tax department has not yet completed the assessment for years 2011-12 and 2012-13, despite being in the know of the massive deficit on BCCI’s part.
In 2010-11, the BCCI’s revenue stood at US$150 million or 
868 crore. According to a report published in Hindu Business Line, the global media rights for international cricket to be held in India between March 2010 and March 2014 were awarded to production house Nimbus for US$612 Million.
Other media reports indicated that official kit sponsorship rights for 5 years from 2010 to 2013 inclusive were awarded to Nike for US$43 Million, while Air Sahara became the official sponsor of the India cricket team for a period of four years at a cost of US$70 Million. The media rights for 25 neutral venue one-day matches to be played over the next 5 years were awarded to Zee Tele-films for US$219.15 Million. According to a report published in Business Standard, the BCCI was to get another Rs 2,000 crore or ($450 million) from the sale of other rights, including hotel, travel and ground sponsorship.
Spot-Fixing Charges
The recently held IPL has been sullied by charges of spot-fixing and underworld links. The BCCI, being the owner of the IPL has also come under scrutiny of media and the public. The BCCI appointed the two-man panel to probe issues involving the BCCI. Despite confessions made in varying degrees to charges of spot-fixing, it has now transpired from the panel findings that Gurunath Meiyappan of the Chennai Super Kings and Raj Kundra of the Rajasthan Royals are definitely not betting men.
However, some cricket pundits feel that the proceedings can be dubbed as a farce. There is the threat of cricket imploding in India, especially in the Indian Premier League (IPL), which is the centre of much controversy following charges of spot-fixing, match-fixing and the involvement of the underworld in facilitating murky deals. The inability to take concrete action against its own will come back to haunt the BCCI. The probe was concluded following lack of evidence — only because the BCCI had failed to supply it.
Former Test cricketers Rahul Dravid and Sanjay Manjrekar feel it will be sad if the BCCI officials lost their credibility in the public eye for allegedly bringing the game and its administration to disrepute. In a media interview recently, Dravid expressed unhappiness over the fact that the BCCI was going through a credibility crisis. The former Indian skipper said: “There are so many fans and so many people who care deeply about this game and it is because of these fans that we are who we are as cricketers. Administrators are there because of the fans and the cricketers to run this game, so credibility of a game, or a board, or even a government for that matter, is important irrespective of what you do. If you are in public life it is important.”
BCCI under RTI
The issue of bringing BCCI under RTI is pending with the Central Information Commission (CIC). The CIC had constituted a Full Bench to hear the matter and issued a notice to the Board of Control for Cricket in India and all its affiliates to bring along with them details of land, buildings, stadiums allotted by state government among others. The BCCI was also asked to produce Income Tax exemptions received by it.
The hearing was scheduled to start on 24 July 2013 but BCCI produced the stay granted by Madras High Court. The panel then decided to adjourn the matter till the stay was vacated or an appropriate order was received from a higher bench of the High Court or Supreme Court.
The CIC is a government body formed to effectively shed light on the working of India’s traditionally opaque public institutions by entertaining petitions from the public under the Right to Information Act (RTI).
“Matter of bringing BCCI under purview of RTI Act is of utmost national importance when BCCI conducts cricket matches with teams controlled by it named as ‘Indian team’ getting all types of recognition and facilities from Union and state governments,” RTI applicant Madhu Agrawal had pleaded before the Commission.
The CIC’s issuing of a notice to the BCCI is yet another step by the Indian government to establish the BCCI as a public body. The BCCI is currently registered as a private society.
CIC’s deputy registrar KL Dass, who is the signatory on the notice to the BCCI, said: “The question here is whether the BCCI is a public authority or not and the CIC wants to check if the BCCI is getting any government funding? This is why CIC has asked the BCCI and its units to provide details.”
