World T20 salary distribution plan among staff red-flagged by BCCI treasurer

A few objections have been raised by the treasurer of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) against board’s plan to distribute the one-time incentive, as the World Cup salary to all those who were involved in the conduct of the 2016 World T20.

BCCI Chief Executive officer Rahul Johri demanded the clearance of Rs 3.3 crore sending an email to 32 employees named in a list on February 28, 2017. Chief Financial Officer Santosh Rangnekar, SC appointed-Committee of Administrators (CoA) member Vikram Limaye and BCCI Lawyer Adarsh Saxena were the people the mail was marked to.

According to the mail the CoA approved the list of payees on 25th February 2017 and tournament directors RP shah and MV Sridhar certified the same. RP Shah and MV Sridhar who are both BCCI administrators are to get $55,000 each going by the list.

But BCCI treasurer Anirudh Chaudhry red-flagged this in his email. He was quoted in the Indian Express: “I see that we have gentlemen getting $55,000 from the execution of this list certifying it. I am a little unclear as to what is it exactly that they are certifying? Are they certifying that this amount ought to be paid to these people?”

MV Sridhar, one of the beneficiaries refused to comment. Former Delhi Police commissioner Neeraj Kumar who was also BCCI’s Anti-Corruption Unit consultant is included in the list of beneficiaries too. He is supposed to get $30,000 while the amount to be received by game development manager Ratnakar Shetty sums up to $20,000. An office peon was allotted $5000 and several other executives are to receive $3000 each.

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Anirudh Chaudhry questioned if the payment of other tournaments were clubbed with the World Cup salary and also wanted to find out that the amounts stated in the sheet includes the amounts for the BCCI games which were held in Florida, USA.

His email stated: “I have reasons to believe that they do. If that be the case, inclusion of those figures here under the budgeted head of salary for the World T20 event may amount to falsification of accounts. Since I am constrained by way of the directions of the CoA to only make the payment and to not withhold any payments, who would be held responsible for this in case it is proven to be the case and it finally comes to light that this in fact was falsification?”

Chaudhury also asked, “I would lastly like to ask as to whether the people involved in the decision-making and certification are truly convinced and satisfied that these people were the only people who worked on the ICC WT20 event?”.

Last week the CoA clarified that all office bearers either in the BCCI or state bodies will get nine years and it is not a cumulative 18-year term which deprives treasurer Anirudh Chaudhry and Joint Secretary Amitabh Choudhury of a post in the board. Going by the BCCI constitution the Treasurer is expected to sign all the payments. But Anirudh Chaudhury chose not to comment on the matter.