Former IPL Chairman Modi Banned for Life from BCCI

Lalit Modi, the first ever chairman of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has been banned from future involvement with the BCCI after a special general meeting (SGM) of the board in Chennai.

The unanimous decision was made quickly after the meeting and it came following a series of legal proceedings in court over the last couple of weeks. The Supreme Court on Wednesday gave the final go-ahead for the BCCI meeting and the board’s action was swift and severe. 

The BCCI meeting “resolved that Mr Lalit Modi is guilty of committing acts of serious misconduct and indiscipline, and… is hereby expelled from the board,” BCCI secretary Sanjay Patel said in a statement after Wednesday’s meeting.

“He shall forfeit all his rights and privileges as administrator. He shall not in future be entitled to hold any position or office, or be admitted in any committee or any member or associate member of the BCCI.”

Modi, speaking to Times Now said he would continue to fight the BCCI. “I expected the ban, it’s sad for Indian cricket because it shows the BCCI is least concerned for the integrity of cricket,” he said. “It’s a cosy club. I’m going to be here, fighting them. I think Indian cricket needs cleansing and as far as I am concerned I am going to go after them. Till now they were colleagues. Time has now come to take everything out of the box and put it in public domain.

“I was already gone. I was suspended for three years. I kept fighting. I will continue to fight. I am moving on, I am looking at other sports. Wait and watch … it’s a global league. I have not been sitting here idle.”

Mr Modi was instrumental in founding the IPL in 2008 and it has become a multi-billion-dollar industry. The IPL is the best-paid of the world’s Twenty20 cricket leagues, with top Indian and international players taking part each spring.