BCCI official website goes down after non-payment of dues by Lalit Modi

India Under-19 Team went on to outclass mighty Australians on Saturday (3 February) and clinch the coveted title. However, when the populous around the country was rejuvenating and expressing joy, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) was faced with the embarrassment of finding its website, bcci.tv to be dysfunctional. If the sources are to be believed, the glitch happened because the Internet domain of BCCI is still owned by former chairman Lalit Modi.

The validity of the domain was for a long stint for over 12 years which started way back in February 2006 to 2nd February 2018. The renewal date was 3rd February 2018, which BCCI failed, since the website is under Modi’s control. Website registrars “register.com” have put the domain name up for public bidding with the minimum bid value of $69.

Transfer of Ownership from Modi to BCCI- Still Pending

The BCCI official told the Times of India, “Modi had bought the domain of the website (from website registrars register-.com and namejet.com) in 2006, ownership is still in his name. He continued to own the domain even after being banned by the board and when he fled the country.” The official also revealed the governing body was not able to purchase a domain of their own as Modi “had purchased 100-odd names with BCCI in them” in 2006.

The BCCI official also said that the board has already filed a case against Lalit Modi in the Bombay High Court seeking a transfer of ownership from Modi to the board itself. However, the case is still pending. It is expected that the case will take a swift after the embarrassment faced by the world’s richest cricket body.

The court “had asked Modi to take care of the operational part” until the final verdict was announced, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) official concluded.