Lalit Modi - identifying himself as Chairman and Commissioner Indian Premier League (suspended) - has demanded to know urgently from the Board of Control for Cricket in India the names of persons who made oral allegations against him, when and where, and the content of the communication.
Mr. Modi has also asked the BCCI whether it intends relying on and using these allegations against him.
On Tuesday, the board informed him that “communications received by the BCCI president were from senior officers, committee members and others expressing their concern about tarnishing the image of the BCCI and the game of cricket [and] were all oral.”
The BCCI on April 26 served a show-cause on Mr. Modi following a raging controversy over IPL issues and asked him to reply to the charges by May 10, but on Tuesday, on his request, it gave him five more days (till May 15) to reply to the notice. Mr. Modi earlier asked for documents/proof to substantiate the charges.
The BCCI agreed to supply documents, but in some cases, it explained, the charges were based on oral communication from a “reliable source.” As the communication was privileged and confidential, the name of the person was being withheld, the board said.
“Manifestly unfair”
To this, Mr. Modi has said:
“You have declined to name the ‘reliable source' who allegedly orally communicated with the BCCI. You have sought to justify this by claiming that this oral communication was ‘privileged and confidential'. This confirms my apprehension that there is no ‘reliable source' and this is all fiction and the ‘privilege and confidential' claim made is only to cover this up.
“Assuming that this phantom [of] ‘reliable source' exists, the withholding of the name of the alleged ‘reliable source', for the reasons stated, is illegal and unjustified. This is also manifestly unfair. I cannot respond to the ‘un-known,' nor be condemned on the basis thereof. This alleged oral communication from the ‘reliable source' is required to be wholly excluded from consideration in these proceedings. Please confirm the same.”
Seeks clarification
In one particular para, Mr. Modi has sought a clarification from BCCI secretary N. Srinivasan which documents will be relied upon and used against him. “I have repeatedly sought your confirmation that except the documents supplied to me, no other document or material will be relied upon or used against me in these proceedings. This confirmation is, however, still not forthcoming.”
Mr. Modi has told the BCCI that “a clear and early response would be greatly appreciated, since the extension for filing my reply is till close of Saturday. I reserve my liberty to seek an opportunity to cross-examine the persons who are said to have made oral communication against me to the president, if the BCCI intends to rely upon the same.”
Rajasthan Royals issue
On ownership of Rajasthan Royals, Mr. Srinivasan on Tuesday told Mr. Modi: “A reading of the show-cause notice would establish that the Governing Council of the IPL authorised the signing of an agreement with the successful franchise ‘Emerging Media (IPL) Limited' and not ‘Jaipur IPL Cricket (Pvt) Limited'. This is clear from page 5 of the show-cause notice. Similarly, the agreements and cancellation documents referred [to] from para 3 till para 8 on pages 17, 18 and 19 of the notice were without the approval of the Governing Council. This fact is mentioned in para 9 of the notice on page 20.”
