BCCI not charitable organisation: I-T dept

Evading taxes for long by calling itself a charitable organisation, the the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) may now have to shell out more than Rs 100 crore as the Income Tax department is set to penalise the Indian Cricket Board for hiding details of its commercial activities.

The I-T departement has passed an order terming the BCCI a commercial organsiation and not a charitable one. Sources in the CBDT confirmed that the order has been passed by the exemptions unit of the department in Mumbai.

Sources said the BCCI has not informed the I-T department about a number of its activities like establishing coaching centres, conducting Twenty20 tournaments and other commercial ventures conducted within and outside the country.

The order, according to sources, has been passed after it was found that the BCCI has not been meeting the criteria of being a charitable institution as it has shared the profits of the commercial activities only on players salaries and operation of other ventures which bring in more business and money.

"The element of benevolence and promotion of the sport (cricket) was not found after the scrutiny of tax related returns," sources said.

The BCCI's reply to the order is still awaited.

The withdrawl of exemptions will happen from the assessment year 2006-07 and the amount of penalty will be calculated accordingly, sources said.