The Supreme Court has rejected Lalit Modi’s plea to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to pay the INR 10.65 crore penalty imposed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for FEMA violations.
Justices P.S. Narasimha and R. Mahadevan said Modi can seek civil remedies if he wants to pursue the matter.
Modi argued that as BCCI vice-president and founding IPL chairman at the time of the alleged FEMA violations, the BCCI should pay the penalty, citing the board’s bylaws.
Both the Bombay High Court and the Supreme Court have clarified that the penalty was personal, not official, so the BCCI is not liable.
This case originated from a Bombay High Court order in December 2023 which dismissed Modi’s plea and imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh, calling the petition frivolous and wholly misconceived.
The High Court referred to a 2005 Supreme Court judgment which held that the BCCI is not a state under Article 12 of the Constitution and therefore cannot be subjected to constitutional pressure.
The High Court said since the ED penalty was personal, the BCCI cannot be asked to intervene.
The Supreme Court’s order means Modi will not get any support from the BCCI and will have to use civil proceedings if he wants to challenge the penalty.
This is another twist in the ongoing Lalit Modi and Indian cricket politics saga.
