BCCI's decision to award contract challenged

The decision of Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) to award a contract to International Management Group and Transworld International Combine (IMG-TWI) towards team clothing sponsorship for International matches to be played in India or outside over the next three years from July 1 was on Wednesday challenged in the Mumbai High Court by Gayatri Arts.

Gayatri Arts, a Mumbai-based company, filed a petition seeking an injunction from the High Court on the BCCI for signing the contract with IMG-TWI or any other group. It will come up for hearing on June 1.

According to Sham Dhumatkar, proprietor of Gayatri Arts, the threeyear contract was awarded to his company which had made the highest bid of Rs 90 crores through a legal tender advertised by the BCCI in a newspaper.

The BCCI confirmed the contract in a letter to Gayatri Arts on May 3 and gave 48 hours to the company to accept the offer. Accordingly, Gayatri Arts accepted the contract in a letter to the BCCI, the petition submitted.

On May 22, however, the BCCI's marketing committee held a second meeting in New Delhi where the contract awarded to Gayatri Arts was resiled and instead awarded to IMG-TWI after an open bidding and revelation of prices.

The petition alleged that the contract was complete with the BCCI writing a letter to Gayatri Arts and the latter accepting the offer. Therefore, it was illegal on the part of the BCCI to renegotiate the contract with others by keeping Gayatri Arts in the dark, the petition contended.

The petition alleged that the BCCI was not transparent and did not release facts and figures to the general public and the media.

Through its solicitors, Gayatri Arts had earlier sent a legal notice to the BCCI asking for a list of tenders received before April 20 and letters of offer received before the second marketing committee meeting of May 22 with the names and bid amounts.