High Court rejects BCCI’s challenge to arbitration ruling, reinforcing tribunal's decision over terminated IPL franchise
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has faced a significant blow after the Bombay High Court ruled in favour of the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Kochi Tuskers Kerala (KTK). The court upheld an arbitral award for INR 538 crore in favour of the franchise owners. Notably, BCCI terminated the Kochi Tuskers franchise in 2011 after playing only one season.
The BCCI allegedly banned KTK for breaching the franchise agreement. The termination was based on Kochi Cricket Private Limited’s (KCPL) failure to submit a bank guarantee within the stipulated deadline.
The franchise cited that issues like stadium availability and shareholding approvals were the reason behind their failure to provide the bank guarantee. They also mentioned that the BCCI had still accepted the payments and engaged in negotiations after the deadline had passed.
In response, the KPCL initiated arbitration proceedings in 2012 and contested the contract termination in 2015. The tribunal ruled in favour of the IPL team. It ordered BCCI to pay INR 384 crore to KCPL and INR 153 crore to RSW, including interests and legal costs.
BCCI contested the outcome in the Bombay High Court, saying the arbitration invoked by RSW was invalid under the Indian Partnership Act. Additionally, it claimed failure to furnish the bank guarantee was a clear breach of contract.
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The Bombay High Court has rejected BCCI’s plea. Justice RI Chagla stated that the court cannot re-examine the merits of the dispute under Section 34 of the Arbitration Act. He also mentioned that the Indian cricket board’s dissatisfaction with the findings was not enough to cancel the award.
“The jurisdiction of this Court under Section 34 of the Arbitration Act is very limited. BCCI’s endeavour to delve into the merits of the dispute is in the teeth of the scope of the grounds contained in Section 34 of the Act. BCCI’s dissatisfaction as to the findings rendered in respect of the evidence and/or the merits cannot be a ground to assail the Award,” the Court observed.
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