It’s been an open secret for a long time that quite a few members of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have resented the States of Maharashtra and Gujarat — with three members each in Mumbai, Maharashtra and Vidarbha, and Gujarat, Saurashtra and Baroda respectively — receiving subvention money from media rights and additional Indian Premier League money from 2008.
These States could have received a cumulative Rs. 800 crore to Rs. 1000 crore over the last 10 years, a period when the BCCI began to make money from television rights with STAR Sports, apparel, team and series sponsorship.
That these member units still get far more money than States with one Ranji Trophy team rankles many in the BCCI. Some of them are clearly delighted that the Supreme Court has endorsed the Lodha Committee recommendation that only one member from Maharashtra and Gujarat will have a vote under the ‘One State, one member, one vote rule’ on an annual rotational basis.
A senior BCCI member from East Zone told The Hindu that he liked a majority of the Lodha Committee recommendations in the “reforms in cricket” report. When asked to be specific, he said: “Equality and the removal of the apartheid policy, and transparency. In what way is Tamil Nadu’s contribution to Indian cricket less than others or for that matter Karnataka or Delhi or Punjab? But these two States received only one subvention and IPL money, whereas Maharashtra and Gujarat got six times over. And the two States had seven votes, taking the CCI into account.”
Touching upon the ‘One State, one member, one vote’ recommendation, the court said: “Those existing members who are affected by the changes suggested by the Committee must appreciate that the changes are being suggested in the interest of the game. Governance being the central theme, the changes in membership in the BCCI are inevitable and must be seen in the right spirit of fair representation.”
This East Zone official is unhappy, however, that the Supreme Court has endorsed the recommendation that the six Ranji Trophy teams (from Maharashtra and Gujarat) receive the grant for development of cricket. “There is also this rule that member units which have staged international matches should be given more money. It’s possible that someone may go to court now,” the official said.
The official did not offer any comment on the proposal to make the CAG and State Accountant General’s office part of the management of the BCCI and State associations, but he welcomed the move to put in place systems and mechanisms to monitor the usage of grants given to the State associations.
With the BCCI to come under the ambit of the Rules and Regulations rewritten by the Lodha Committee in six months’ time, the distribution of a fixed sum for all States will come to an end.
