Bombay High Court accepts plea concerning INR 14.82 crore dues from cricket board to state government for police protection fees
Additionally, the Bombay High Court has also requested a state government senior officer to file an affidavit justifying the lowered fees for offering police protection services for the period.
On Thursday, August 29, the Bombay High Court heavily criticized the state government of Maharashtra for an unlikely, unreasonable reduction in its fees providing police protection for cricket events including Indian Premier League (IPL).
The court's response came in the light of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by RTI (Right To Information) Activist Anil Galgali, which claimed that the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) still owes a hefty INR 14.82 crore to Mumbai Police Department. The claims made do not comprise recent ones, as they are dated to the matches at the city's Wankhede Stadium and Brabourne Stadium from 2013 to 2018.
This retrospective down gradation of the fees by the police department became a matter of concern as the court observed that while prices of public necessities keep inflating, but the hefty fees, recoverable from a rich cricketing body, have seen an unlikely downswing.
“What is this, madam? You keep increasing water charges for the public, even for slum dwellers but reduce these fees. BCCI is one of the richest cricket associations globally. That’s how they become rich,” the court observed while referring to the State’s government pleader as quoted by Hindustan Times.
Additionally, the Bombay High Court has also requested a senior officer within the department to file an affidavit justifying the lowered fees for offering police protection services for the said period. On top of that, the court stated that it failed to quite understand the intention behind lowering the service prices.
Notably, the court had earlier expressed disinterest in entertaining Galgali's plea, however, upon providing evidences of a 26 June 2023's government resolution, it partially accepted the plea, questioning the downward revision of prices.
The next hearing on the said matter will be conducted by the Bombay High Court on October 08, 2024, by which an affidavit will have to be filed duly with the bench.
Download Our App