SC appoints senior advocate Maninder Singh as amicus curiae in BCCI matter, to hear on July 28

The case is significant for the BCCI as the date of amendments may decide the tenures of its president Sourav Ganguly and secretary Jay Shah.

The Ganguly-led panel had taken charge of the BCCI in October 2019. | Photo Credit: AFP

Supreme Court on Thursday appointed Senior Advocate and former Additional Solicitor General Maninder Singh as amicus curiae to assist it in the matter related to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and fixed the hearing on the plea of the cricket body for amending its Constitution to July 28.

A bench comprising Chief Justice N V Ramana and Justices Krishna Murari and Hima Kohli took note of the fact that an earlier amicus curiae has now been elevated as a judge of the apex court.

“We will appoint senior advocate Maninder Singh as an amicus in place of P S Narasimha (now Justice P S Narasimha),” said the bench and fixed the plea of BCCI for hearing on July 28.

The case is significant for the BCCI as the date of amendments may decide the tenures of its president Sourav Ganguly and secretary Jay Shah.

The BCCI urged the court to revise a rule in its new Constitution which mandates that administrators have to go through a three-year ‘cooling-off period’ after six successive years in the BCCI or any State association.

The ‘cooling-off period’ was a major recommendation made by the Justice R.M. Lodha Committee to reform cricket administration in the country.

The constitution of BCCI, which has been approved by the top court stipulates a mandatory three-year cooling-off period for anyone who had served two consecutive terms of three years each in the state cricket association or BCCI.

While Ganguly was an office bearer in the Cricket Association of Bengal, Shah had served in the Gujarat Cricket Association.

The court had adjourned the case on April 16, 2021 after the amicus curiae sought time to compile the submissions of the various lawyers.

In its 2018 judgement, the Supreme Court had seen eye-to-eye with Justice Lodha’s conclusion that “the game will be better off without cricketing oligopolies”.

To this end, the court had supported the recommendation of the Justice Lodha panel that cricket administrators should undergo a “cooling-off period” before contesting elections to the BCCI or State associations.

The Ganguly-led panel had taken charge of the BCCI in October 2019.