No payments by BCCI without secretary’s nod

There was already a strong operational system, which the BCCI has now constitutionalised and crystallised. My office has adopted the double-signature system A CHAUDHARY, BCCI treasurer

NEW DELHI: Having learnt a lesson from questionable payments made in the past, like the one made to the UK-based security and investigation company Page Protective Services (PPS) by the earlier regime, the BCCI has adopted a new payment authorisation system.

The Board has amended the bye-law and now only the secretary can approve payments to be made by it.

“There was already a strong operational system, which the BCCI has now constitutionalised and crystallised. My office has adopted the double-signature system,” BCCI treasurer Anirudh Chaudhary claimed on Thursday.

The amendment also makes it mandatory for the joint secretary to sign cheques with the treasurer.

The BCCI adopted the amendment at its annual general meeting on November 9 but made it public on Wednesday.

As per the earlier provision, the treasurer’s office made the payments and incurred expenditure in accordance with the decisions of the Board, working committee or any other sub-committee appointed by the Board.

The amendment states that all payments will now be subject to approval by the secretary. In his absence, the president will make payments and incur expenditure out of the Board’s funds.

Former BCCI secretary Sanjay Patel and Chaudhary, both close aides of former BCCI chief N Srinivasan, are facing questions over the payment to PPS.

Senior Board members allege the payment of $900,000 (close to R6 crore) made to PPS in 2013-2014 was to snoop over colleagues.

Patel and Chaudhary clarified that the firm was hired to protect BCCI’s privacy because banned IPL commissioner Lalit Modi was procuring documents and posting them on Twitter, Facebook and his website.

Chaudhary maintained that his office released the payment only after obtaining the required documents from the secretary’s office. Since the secretary was the decision-making authority, he was following procedure. Patel had asked for time to explain his position on who had asked him to pay PPS. However, it is not clear if he has satisfied the new regime on the issue.

A two-member committee of the BCCI, comprising Ajay Shirke and G Ganga Raju, has been investigating the matter.