Lodha Panel submits its third status report in Supreme Court

The Lodha Committee has submitted its third status report before the Supreme Court. In its latest report, it has recommended removal of all BCCI office-bearers and the appointment of former home secretary GK Pillai as an observer to preside over the functioning of the cricket board. It has allowed the BCCI CEO to carry out the day-to-day operations but wants an observer to preside over the administration of the cricket board especially with respect to the award of contracts, transparency norms, and audit.

The latest recommendations of the panel are less intrusive as it still allows the BCCI CEO to be at the helm of affairs, supervised by an observer. The panel in its first status report submitted on September 28 recommended for replacing the office-bearers of the cricket board with a group of independent administrators. However, that recommendation was rejected by the Supreme Court.

As per the Lodha Committee recommendations approved by the Supreme Court, no official should hold a position for more than three tenures of three years each, with no two consecutive terms, and age cap should be 70. Office-bearers cannot be ministers or bureaucrats and they should distant themselves from the state association that they represent. Taking strong exception to the defiance of several office bearers at both the BCCI and State Associations who continue to hold posts although they stand disqualified as per the above recommendations and Supreme Court’s July 18 order, it has recommended the removal of such office bearers who do not meet the above-approved criteria. The July 18 verdict of the Supreme Court accepted the majority of the Lodha Panel recommendations.

Justice Lodha committee was appointed by the Supreme Court in 2014 to make recommendations to the BCCI in order to prevent frauds and conflict of interest in cricket administration. The committee was appointed in the wake of the spot-fixing scandal in Indian Premier League (IPL). The committee recommendations aim to resolve issues of governance, transparency, and conflict of interest in BCCI.