The Madras High Court on Friday cleared the decks for commencement of a league for volleyball, on the lines of Indian Premier League for cricket and Indian Super League for Football, by refusing to stay the operation of an agreement entered between Volleyball Federation of India (VFI) and Baseline Ventures, a private firm based in Mumbai.
A Division Bench of Justices M. Sathyanarayanan and P. Rajamanickam said it was not inclined to grant an interim stay on a public interest litigation (PIL) petition without giving an opportunity to the Union Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, the federation as well as the private firm an opportunity to make their submissions before the court.
The judges, however, made it clear that the subsistence of the agreement, signed on February 21, would be subject to the result of the PIL petition filed by Sebastian George, 59, former captain of Kerala State volleyball team and incumbent managing trustee of a foundation named after legendary volleyball player Jimmy George who had died in 1987.
In his affidavit, the petitioner had claimed that almost all the clauses in the agreement were lopsided. Hence, it would result in the death knell to volleyball in the country if implemented. He also accused the federation of having finalised the agreement through private negotiations without inviting tenders from all interested companies.
The idea of starting a league for volleyball was conceived in 2015 and an agreement was signed with a private company named, Sportz and Live Entertainment in 2016, for organising league matches. However, due to infighting between office-bearers of the federation, that agreement was not given effect to, he alleged.
Striking a comparison between that agreement and the latest contract with Baseline Ventures, the petitioner said the former paved the way for the federation receiving ₹ 32.71 crore over 10 years, whereas the latter guaranteed a payment of only ₹15.91 crore over the same period of time. Thus, the federation would lose considerable revenue, he claimed.
However, counsel for the federation Sivam Sivanandaraj opposed the PIL plea and accused the petitioner of being a rival competitor. Assuring the court that volleyball players shall not be prevented from participating in international tournaments during the course of the league as apprehended by the petitioner, he sought time to file a detailed counter affidavit.
Accepting his request, the judges adjourned further hearing to January 11. In the meantime, they directed the petitioner’s counsel to serve the case papers on Assistant Solicitor General G. Karthikeyan for obtaining necessary instructions from the Centre.
