MINISTRY ASKED WHY INDIAN CRICKET BOARD NOT UNDER RTI

NEW DELHI: Why should cricket controlling body of the country, the BCCI, be not answerable under the RTI Act in light of various judicial orders and a recent law commission report, the Central Information Commission has directed the sports body and the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports to explain.

“It is the responsibility of the CIC to put an end to this prolonging uncertainty which makes the BCCI non-transparent and unaccountable without any moral backing and legal reasoning,” Information Commissioner Sridhar Acharyulu said.

The matter came before him as the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports did not give a satisfactory response to an RTI applicant, Geeta Rani.

The applicant in the 12-pointer RTI application asked whether the players selected by the BCCI are playing for India or for the association, how can a private association represent the country internationally, what is the benefit of the government in giving authority to the BCCI to represent the country in international tournaments etc.

The ministry claimed it has no information available and since BCCI has not been declared as public authority under the RTI Act, hence the RTI application could not be transferred to BCCI.

“The commission directs the Cpio/authorised representative of the BCCI to explain why the commission should not declare the BCCI as public authority in view of various judicial pronouncements and the law commission’s recommendation in its 275th report,” he directed.

It is the responsibility of the CIC to put an end to this prolonging uncertainty which makes the BCCI nontransparent and unaccountable without any moral backing and legal reasoning