HC directs BCCI to submit affidavit on CSK's plea

The next hearing will be held on Sept 23

The high court here has directed the Board of Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) and others to submit their affidavit on the petition filed by Chennai Super Kings Ltd against the BCCI and others in relation to the Justice R M Lodha Committee's report. The Bihar Cricket Association and BCCI have questioned the maintainability of the petition. The next hearing will be held on September 23.

According to reports, a BCCI Working Committee is expected to be held on Friday in Kolkata, where the related issues might come up for discussion.

Last week, the Chennai Super Kings had filed a petition challenging the Lodha committee's decision in the high court and sought a stay on it.

The Supreme Court, which had appointed Justice R M Lodha Committee, in its report on July, said, "The Committee proposes to impose sanction on IPL (franchisee) under Section 6, rule 4.2(c)[13] of the operational rules by suspending it from the league for a period of two years. We order accordingly. The period of suspension shall commence from the date of this order.

In the writ petition, the company alleged that the Committee order goes against the fundamental principles of natural justice and fair hearing, non-compliance of which is evident from a finding of the Committee. The only task left to the Committee was imposition of appropriate punishment on the franchise without going into the charges or the offences committed.

"The refusal of the Committee to enter into the dispute of whether the franchise (CSK)/its owner India Cements was guilty of violating clause 4.1.1 of the IPL operational rules has led to a grave miscarriage of justice," said the company.

Stars of CSK -- M S Dhoni, Suresh Raina, R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Dwayne Bravo -- would be certainly contracted to play for any other IPL team for the forthcoming season and CSK would lose their services. Besides, CSK might lose other players also to rival franchisees, the company said.

"The committee had failed to note that the very reason for appointing a high-level panel comprising of former judges of the apex court was that it could look into the findings of the Mukul Mudgal committee. The apex court had held they were not sitting in appeal over the findings of the Mudgal committee nor were they inclined to look into the materials which were placed before the committee. The Lodha committee always had the authority to call for the material forming the basis of the Mudgal committee reports, as observed by the apex court in its recent order," said the company.