BCCI members question Committee of Administrators over media rights sale value

Continuing with their pressure tactics against the Committee of Administrators (CoA), some Indian cricket board members questioned the procedure being followed for the sale of media rights for domestic and bilateral cricket in India. The process will be decided in the first week of April.

An informal meeting of BCCI state units was held in New Delhi on Saturday in which officials discussed the issue. They said the base price per game of the media rights was lower than the existing value. “Among other things, the members discussed the following acts of the CoA that are detrimental to BCCI and are long term in nature, where decisions have been taken without consulting the general body of members of the BCCI.

“The tender for media rights of domestic and bilateral games in India, which six years ago was sold for Rs 43 crore per match after much discussion and effort and after following a transparent process, is now being decided only by a two-member COA with inputs and briefings from the CEO and the legal team. They have put a minimum bid value which is lower than the existing value of six years ago,” the group said in a release.

“The Marketing Committee or the members that constitute the General Body of the BCCI were not consulted.”

The group claimed 22 members attended the meeting, of which around 13 were physically present while the rest were connected via video call.

The BCCI members also alleged that CEO Rahul Johri, in consultation with a security consultant, got a personal body guard provided to him under the pretext that he was his secretary.