In a major decision, the Bombay High Court has ruled in favor of the now-defunct IPL team Kochi Tuskers Kerala, asking the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) to pay over ₹538 crore as compensation. The court upheld a previous arbitration ruling from 2015 and rejected BCCI’s attempt to challenge it.
The case began after Kochi Tuskers Kerala was removed from the IPL in 2011 for failing to provide a bank guarantee. In 2015, an arbitration panel led by former Chief Justice R.C. Lahoti ruled that the BCCI had wrongly terminated the team’s contract and ordered them to pay compensation.
“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 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 said.
Now, the Bombay High Court has agreed with that arbitration decision and said courts cannot interfere with such rulings unless there is a clear legal error. The BCCI will now have to pay Kochi Tuskers around ₹538 crore, and possibly more with added interest.
Although Kochi Tuskers Kerala only played in the IPL for one season in 2011, this judgment gives them a major financial victory. It also sets an important example for how legal disputes involving sports teams and contracts should be handled fairly.
