BCCI Faces Supreme Court Heat After Resisting Reforms - 10 Developments

The influential Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is facing a possible leadership crisis after the Supreme Court demanded it accept sweeping changes by Friday. The BCCI finds itself on a sticky wicket after it agreed to implement only part of a raft of changes recommended by the Supreme Court-appointed Lodha panel, which was set up last year to usher in reforms at the world's richest cricket board.

The panel, headed by former chief justice of India RM Lodha, recommended, among other things, age and tenure restrictions for top officials as well as banning them from serving successive terms.

The court made it clear that the BCCI, run largely by politicians and industrialists, could not cherry pick recommendations by the Lodha panel.

The following are the top 10 developments of the BCCI vs Lodha committee case:

1. On July 14, 2016, a two-judge Supreme Court bench, that included the Chief Justice of India TS Thakur, empowered the Lodha panel to implement a series of reforms to bring in more transparency in BCCI's style of governance. The committee suggested major reforms that included age caps, tenure restrictions, one-man-one-post, one state-one-vote, among others. The reforms were binding and would apply to the Board as well as its state units.

2. Lodha panel set BCCI two deadlines - September 30 to make constitutional changes (adopt the Memorandum of Association and Rules) and December 15 for the Board to form a nine-member Apex committee that will replace the powerful working committee

3. Unhappy with the reforms, BCCI appointed former Supreme Court judge Justice Markandey Katju to review the Lodha panel recommendations. Katju called the Lodha panel "unconstitutional and illegal." The BCCI promptly filed a review petition in the Supreme Court in July

4. Acting on Katju's advise, the BCCI also announced the date of its AGM (September 21). Katju said there was nothing wrong in the BCCI staging its AGM as it was governed by the Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act, 1975 and only the Registrar could take action against the BCCI, not a court-appointed committee.

5. In August, BCCI secretary met the Lodha committee saying the AGM will conduct "routine" business. On the contrary, the Board advertised inviting applications for the post of selectors. Its agenda also includes formation of a new working committee and even an ombudsman - all in defiance of Lodha panel orders.

6. Lodha panel filed a status report to the Supreme Court on September 28, complaining of non-compliance of its orders. The panel wanted BCCI's top brass to be "superseded". Justice Thakur wants BCCI "to stop behaving like Lords and fall in line."

7. A defiant BCCI failed to meet its first deadline and instead called a Special General Meeting on September 30 to discuss implementation of Lodha reforms. The SGM is adjourned by a day because several members turns up without letters to represent their units.

8. On October 1, BCCI cherry picked many recommendations made by the Lodha panel but makes no decision on the itchy proposals like one-state-one-unit and age and tenure caps for officials. BCCI also decided to disburse large sums of money (approximately 500 crores) to state units as grants.

9. Lodha committee told BCCI's bankers - Bank of Maharashtra and Yes Bank - to stop disbursing grants to state units without its approval. BCCI president Anurag Thakur tells media that freezing of accounts will force Board to cancel the India vs New Zealand Test series. Justice Lodha clarified on October 4 that BCCI was misinterpreting or deliberately twisting its order to the banks.

10. On October 6, Supreme Court gives an ultimatum to the BCCI to 'unconditionally' accept the Lodha reforms or it will pass an order on October 7. BCCI refuses to give any such undertaking. Supreme Court also says that state units must not utilize BCCI grants made after the AGM on September 21.