Supreme court dismisses Lalit Modi's plea asking BCCI to pay ED penalty

The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a plea filed by former cricket administrator Lalit Modi, who had sought an order directing the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to pay a penalty of Rs 10.65 crore imposed on him by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for violating the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA). A bench comprising Justices P. S. Narasimha and R. Mahadevan stated that Modi is free to pursue civil remedies as per the law.

Earlier, on December 19 last year, the Bombay High Court had rejected Modi's petition and imposed a cost of Rs 1 lakh, labeling his plea as “frivolous and wholly misconceived.” The court pointed out that the penalty was imposed on Modi personally by the adjudication authority under FEMA, and the BCCI could not be held liable.

Modi, in his petition, had argued that he served as the BCCI vice president and was also the chairman of the Indian Premier League governing body during the relevant period. He claimed that under the BCCI’s bylaws, the board was obligated to indemnify him against penalties arising from actions undertaken in his official capacity.

Court Upholds Previous Rulings Against Modi's Claims

The Bombay High Court, while referring to a 2005 Supreme Court judgment, reiterated that the BCCI was not a 'state' under Article 12 of the Constitution and therefore determined that no writ could issue against the BCCI for indemnification against the ED's penalties.

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“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. Dismissing the petition, the court further directed Modi to pay Rs 1 lakh to the Tata Memorial Hospital within four weeks.