Team Herald
PANJIM: After a series of claims and revelations of corruption and misappropriation of funds by Goa Cricket Association, international audit firm Deloitte’s recent report on state cricket associations has unearthed the misuse of huge sums granted by Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
It has found that Goa Cricket Association (GCA) had paid huge allowances to its members to watch Indian Premier League matches in the past.
GCA president Chetan Desai clarified that the allowances were paid to the clubs and their members in the year 2014-15 and such activities have been stopped for the past two years. “This has happened in the year 14-15. And after that we never funded anyone. All this things happened during the previous group, after that nothing happened. This has nothing to do with the present group,” Desai said.
Following the report, GCA gave an undertaking to the BCCI in November that it won’t fritter away resources in such a manner. The seven-page undertaking signed by all the top 12 GCA officials suggests there was no financial mechanism to check the plunder in the association.
The undertaking indicates vendors were paid in cash and only handwritten receipts were taken. In one case, GCA purchased an LED video display board for Rs 1.64 crore, but put that down as miscellaneous expense.
GCA had also bought 18 vehicles, and two chassis which they had promised to dispose off in three months by inviting tenders. “The vehicles have been already auctioned and sold. Whatever they had given we have complied with them and we have also done whatever best we could do. After that nothing has happened,” Desai said. “This is nothing to do with present circumstances. It’s all from the past,” he said.
In October 2016, the Lodha panel had directed the BCCI to furnish the Deloitte reports. The BCCI had hired Deloitte under its ‘project transformation’ in November 2015 while under pressure to change its opaque functioning.
Last month, during the hearing on implementing Justice RM Lodha Committee report, the Supreme Court was informed of the Deloitte report, running into 4,800 pages.
In July 2016, Desai, secretary Vinod Phadke and treasurer Akbar Mulla were arrested by the special investigation team of the Goa Police for allegedly misappropriating Rs 3 crore of the association’s funds.
The Deloitte report has also caught Hyderabad Cricket Association as the unit has no accurate details of travel by its officials and payments made to its vendors. But HCA has pledged to enter into formal agreements with the travel vendors in future and put in place guidelines for travel and payment of daily allowances.
Some other state associations too are facing corruption charges with various agencies probing fraud involving millions of rupees, but no FIR has been registered.
However, cases have been registered against some Jammu and Kashmir association officials under Sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), and 406 and 409 (criminal breach of trust) over a financial case.
The BCCI now releases grants only after state units submit annual returns.
