Make efforts to look into issues raised by Guha: CIC to BCCI

The CIC on Friday urged the Committee of Administrators running the BCCI to "immediately initiate efforts" to look into the issues raised by historian Ramachandra Guha in his resignation letter.

The Central Information Commission also made it clear that the BCCI is a national sports federation (NSF) but stopped short of declaring it a public authority under the RTI Act.

The observations of the CIC came while hearing the case of an RTI applicant who had sought to know from the Union sports ministry the provisions under which the Board of Control for Cricket in India, registered under Tamil Nadu Society Act, selects the Indian team for international events.

Applicant Om Prakash Kashiram did not get a satisfactory response from the ministry after which he approached the Commission with his appeal. "This CoA has taken charge with immediate effect started liaising with BCCI's chief executive officer Rahul Johri, who is in-charge of the daily administration of the board. This means the Union of India has taken over the administration of BCCI through the Supreme Court's appointed committee, hence the BCCI, its CoA already became public authority and answerable," Information Commissioner Sridhar Acharyulu said. The Commission did not bring it under the RTI Act because of a pending matter before the Madras High Court.

It directed the ministry of youth affairs and sports to inform it and the applicant about its efforts to expedite the process of bringing a bill or adopting appropriate legal measures to declare BCCI as public authority under RTI Act.

It also directed the Committee of Administrators to adopt transparency in its functions.

"The Committee of Administrators and the CEO need to immediately initiate efforts to find the facts on the issues raised by Ramachandra Guha, take necessary steps to prevent wrongs, if found to have been committed," he said.