Feroz Shah Kotla may lose India-Sri Lanka T20I as DDCA struggles to furnish documents

It is learnt that the BCCI has already shortlisted three venues — Ranchi, Uttar Pradesh and Hyderabad — to host the fixture if the DDCA fails to procure the necessary clearances.

Moreover, the BCCI wants the DDCA to give it in writing whether or not they would be able host the match and those of the World T20.

“We have asked the DDCA to send us in writing whether they can host the matches or not. Whether they have received the necessary permission or not so that we can take final call on it soon,” BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur told The Indian Express.

With the DDCA busy getting the necessary clearances for the World T20, officials woke up to the prospect of hosting the India-Sri Lanka T20I only on Monday. According to a senior DDCA official, clearances for the World T20, work for which began more than a week ago, would only materialise by the end of February. So getting the clearances for the February 12 match remains a big if.

Mudgal refuses to sign bills

This development comes at a time when Justice Mukul Mudgal has refused to clear bills running into lakhs for expenses which were incurred by the DDCA without his permission during the fourth India-South Africa Test.

Following allegations of corruption in the DDCA, the Delhi High Court had appointed Justice Mudgal to oversee the Test and other matches at the venue till March 31, 2016. But his presence seems to have done little to keep a check on the officebearers who allegedly carried out additional expenses in catering and printing without Mudgal’s knowledge.

It is learnt that the DDCA owes Embassy Caterers Rs 11.5 lakh for 1,750 (350 every day) more plates consumed, which was over and above the initial order, during the fourth Test held last month. Justice Mudgal was not aware about the development and has not cleared the bill.

This is not the only expense undertaken without Mudgal’s consent. Some repair/installation work on seats and ticket printing expenses (Rs 17 and 24 lakh, respectively) also came as a surprise to Mudgal.

“He was not at all happy when the bills were produced in front of him. All the bills had the signature of Chetan Chauhan, who is the working president of the association. When the bill on new seats were produced, Mr Mudgal asked ‘show me the seats’. There was no reply from either the signatory or the members present,” a senior DDCA oficial said.

When contacted, DDCA treasurer Ravinder Manchanda played down the issue and said, “everything has been cleared. There is no pending bill. There was some confusion but all payments have been released.” Regarding the repair work on seats, Manchanda said: “This has nothing to do with Mudgal. It was a routine job.”

Manchanda’s claim, though, was refuted by Embassy Caterers. A representative claimed the firm owes more than the Rs 11.5 lakh from the DDCA.

In his 27-page report on the India-South Africa Test, Justice Mudgal had pointed out serious deficiencies in the management of the DDCA and called for a “more organised financial structure” to streamline expenses during a match.
Mudgal’s report noted that bills worth over Rs 1.77 crores were pending since 2012-13, while bills worth more than Rs 3.79 crores for the financial year 2014-15 have not been cleared. This, he felt, “results in a higher number of vendors not bidding and others quoting higher rates to cover the risk of huge delays in getting payments.”

Now the Delhi cricket association’s officials’ decision to keep Midgal in the dark and carry on spending could be included in his second report which is likely to be submitted before the high court hears the matter on February 2.