N. Srinivasan's plans of taking over his duties as president of the BCCI took a jolt with the Supreme Court suggesting the formation of a new three-member panel to probe allegations of corruption in IPL 2013.
The court had explicitly said earlier that Srinivasan was to refrain from discharging his duties as BCCI president, despite the under-fire supremo winning the elections unopposed for a further year's term.
The Supreme Court suggested former High Court judge Mukul Mudgal to head the three-member panel with the other two members suggested being senior advocate Niloy Dutta and Additional Solicitor General L. Nageswara Rao.
The ruling comes on a petition filed by the Cricket Association of Bihar, which had attempted to stop Srinivasan from contesting the elections. The Supreme Court allowed Srinivasan to do so, however, on September 29, but with a condition that he could not take charge as president until the matter in the court is resolved.
The CAB had filed a petition at the Supreme Court saying there was a conflict of interest involved in the two-member IPL panel constituted by the BCCI, and which the Bombay High Court termed "illegal."
The panel set up by the BCCI had given the IPL, including owners of the Chennai Super Kings and the Rajasthan Royals, a clean chit, which again led to much furore within the media and the public, who questioned the validity of the decisions.
Supreme Court judges Justice A.K. Patnaik and Justice Jagdish Singh Khehar, who suggested the formation of a new three-member panel, will now listen to the recommendations from both the BCCI's and CAB's counsel, with the court expected to zero in on the panel on Tuesday.
The apex court heard a plea from the BCCI asking it to allow Srinivasan to dispose of his duties as it was affecting the functioning of the Indian cricket board. The Supreme Court said it would look into the request on the condition that Srinivasan stayed away from all matter concerning the IPL probe.
