SC rejects Lalit Modi’s request seeking Rs. 10.65 crore payment from BCCI

The Supreme Court has rejected Lalit Modi’s plea that sought the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) to pay a Rs 10.65 crore penalty that was imposed on him by the ED (Enforcement Directorate) for violating the FEMA (Foreign Exchange Management Act).

Justices P. S. Narasimha and R. Mahadevan took centre stage and noted that Lalit Modi is free to explore the civil remedies as per the law. Interestingly, the case on Modi originates from a ruling by the Bombay High Court on December 19, 2023. The court dismissed Modi’s plea and went on to impose a cost of Rs 1 lakh on him. 

In his plea, Modi stated that he was appointed as the vice president of the BCCI, during which period he was also the chairman of the IPL. However, the high court stated that the authority under FEMA had imposed the penalty personally on Lalit Modi, and there



was no liability on the BCCI to bear the amount. 

In Modi’s plea, he claimed that the BCCI would be bearing the amount as per the board’s bylaws. Reflecting on the same, the high court took reference from a judgement from a 2005 Supreme Court ruling that clarified that the BCCI does not fall under a ‘state’ under Article 12 of the Constitution. 

 "In matters of alleged indemnification of the petitioner (Modi) in the context of penalties imposed upon the petitioner by the ED, there is no question of discharge of any public function, and therefore, for this purpose, no writ could be issued to the BCCI," the HC had said after Modi filed the petition in 2018.

"In any event, the reliefs are wholly misconceived. This petition is frivolous, and accordingly, we dismiss this petition," the statement added.