₹52 crore fine slapped on board for ‘abusing power’
NEW DELHI : The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) suffered a huge blow on Wednesday as the Competition Commission of India slapped ~52.24 crore fine on the national cricket body for anti-competitive practices with respect to the Indian Premier League (IPL) media rights.
“The assessment of the Commission clearly brings out that the impugned clause in the IPL (Indian Premier League) Media Rights Agreement has been pursued by BCCI consciously to protect the commercial interest of the bidders of broadcasting rights as well as the economic interest of BCCI,” it said.
The original case was filed by Surinder Singh Barmi, a New Delhi resident.
In its 44-page order, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) said the penalty of ~52.24 crore comes to nearly 4.48 per cent of the average of the BCCI’S relevant turnover during the last three financial years.
The average turnover of ~1,164.7 crore is for three financial years --- 2013-14, 2014-15 and 2015-16.
This is not the first time that the BCCI has come under the Competition Commission’s scrutiny. Earlier in 2013, the watchdog had penalised the cricket board.
In February 2013, the watchdog had slapped a fine of ~52.24 crore on the BCCI.
Although at present, the average of the relevant turnover is slightly higher than the one which was considered by the CCI while passing the order in February 2013, the regulator said it prefers to maintain the penalty amount.
(With inputs from PTI)
THIS IS NOT THE FIRST TIME THE BCCI HAS COME UNDER THE CCI’S SCRUTINY. IN 2013, THE WATCHDOG HAD PENALISED THE CRICKET BOARD.