Can BCCI be brought under RTI?

In a democracy like India, transparency and accountability in the administration must be a sine qua non. Until 2005, there was no way of gaining access to any information related to the working of any public authority. But, RTI Act resolved such an issue. 

However, the difficulty still persists in determining whether a body is a public authority or not to fall under the ambit of the RTI Act. This issue surfaced much more when BCCI came into the limelight. The foremost question put was; 

Whether BCCI must be subjected to RTI or not? Whether the players chosen by BCCI represent India or the association? Let’s discuss these in this article. Stay tuned!

What is BCCI?

The BCCI is the national governing body for cricket in India which was set up on 4th December 1928 by a handful of players at Delhi's Roshnara Club to end the British monopoly in India. This was an attempt to build an Indian identity in the world of cricket. Also, the BCCI neither follows a properly regulated structure like other sporting bodies in the world nor follows corporate governance laws. 

BCCI has its own constitution specifying the rules and regulations for players and administrators. It is India's richest sporting body and the richest cricket board in the world. BCCI does not depend on the Government of India for its finances. Therefore, it can be said that BCCI is not a government body. So, does this means the BCCI does not come under the purview of the RTI Act? What do you think? 

To answer, it’s important first to understand the “public authorities under the Act”. Now, read ahead.

Did you know?

With the IPL season going on, do you know whether BCCI is the owner of IPL? IPL is contested by ten teams based in seven cities and three states in India. The league was founded by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in 2007, a franchise-based Twenty- 20 cricket league.

Which government bodies are covered under RTI Act?

All government departments come within the RTI Act as “public authorities”. These include public sector units, municipal corporations, state and central governments, ministries at the centre & state level, judiciary branch, government-owned companies, government schools & universities, PSU etc. But how can you seek the help of RTI to disclose the expenses of the public authorities? Read till the end to know.

Who is a public authority?

“Public authority” means any authority or body, or institution of self-government established or constituted

1. by or under the Constitution. Ex: Union and state executives, Union and state Council of Ministers, the President and Governors etc.

2. by any other law made by Parliament. Ex: regulatory bodies (SEBI, RBI etc.), high courts etc.

3. by any other law made by state legislature Ex: SEBI, RBI etc.

4. by notification issued or order made by the appropriate Government, and includes any

(i) body owned, controlled or substantially financed; 

(ii) non-Government organization substantially financed, directly or indirectly by funds provided by the appropriate Government.

Ex: NITI Aayog, UIDAI, etc. 

What do you mean by ‘information’ & ‘records’ under RTI?

One can obtain information concerning the expenses of government representatives, including government records, be it their telephone bills, electricity bills and fuel bills etc. Such information is made available as it’s the taxpayer's money which is being spent.

Information in these contexts means- Records, Documents, Memos, E-mails, Opinions, Advices, Press releases, Circulars, Orders, Logbooks, Contracts, Reports, Papers, Samples, Models, Data material held in any electronic form and Information relating to any private body which a public authority can access under any other law for the time being in force.

Record in the context means- any document, manuscript and file, any microfilm, microfiche and facsimile copy of a document, any reproduction of image or images embodied in such microfilm (whether enlarged or not) and any other material produced by a computer or any other device.

Can BCCI be brought under RTI?

A few years back, the Central Information Commission (the top appellate body in RTI matters) ruled that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is covered under the RTI Act and answerable to our people as it satisfies the criteria of RTI Act.

• Basically, this Commission took the help of the law, the Supreme Court’s order along with the Law Commission of India report, and submissions of the Central Public Information Officer in the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports to conclude that the nature and characteristics of the BCCI fulfil the requisite conditions of Section 2(h) of the RTI Act.

• Before the Supreme Court’s judgment in 2018, the matter blew up when the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports did not respond satisfactorily to an RTI applicant (12- pointers RTI application) who wanted to know the provisions and guidelines under which the BCCI has been representing India & selecting players for the national team. 

• It was questionable whether players selected by BCCI represented the association or India? If represents an association which is a private body, then how come they are representing India?

• These questions were unanswered as the Ministry claimed that BCCI has not been declared public authority, so no information is available in this regards.

• The SC in 2019 held that the BCCI is the ‘approved’ national-level body holding virtually monopoly rights to organise cricket events in India.

• Hence, the BCCI was even though considered a private body exempting it from the RTI Act, which applies only to public authorities. The SC ruled that BCCI falls under the definition of public authority and as a result, the BCCI is now required to respond to RTI requests & provide information which falls under the Act’s purview but with limitations.

Important provisions under RTI Act 2005

It was only after 2005 that transparency and accountability in the administrations can be seen after the act was passed.

• Section 2(h) defines a body's criteria for being called a public authority. “Public authorities” refer to all government agencies at both the local and union levels, including subordinate state and local bodies such as city councils including public institutions like government schools, colleges etc. Private associations that accept funding from central or local governments must also follow certain requirements under the RTI Act

• Section 4(1)(b):  The government is responsible for maintaining and disclosing information in a timely manner

• Section 6:  A person who desires to obtain any information shall make a request to the public information officer

• Section 7:  PIOs must provide information(s) within a stipulated time range.

• Section 8(1): Information, disclosure of which would prejudicially affect the sovereignty and integrity of India or lead to incitement of an offence, shall not be disclosed

• Section 19:  A two-tiered appeals system is in place

• Section 20:  Stiff penalties for public servants who fail to provide or deliberately hinder access to information.

To wrap this up, let's recall what a renowned Justice PN Bhagwati once said, "Where a society has chosen to accept democracy as its creedal faith, it is elementary that the citizens ought to know what their government is doing".