The Supreme Court on Monday sent former IPL boss Lalit Modi packing—not with a rejection, but with a redirection. His latest attempt to make the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) cough up the ₹10.65 crore fine slapped on him by the Enforcement Directorate didn’t fly with the apex court. Instead, the judges advised him to try his luck with a civil court.
A Bench of Justices PS Narasimha and R Mahadevan disposed of Modi’s appeal against the Bombay High Court’s earlier refusal to entertain his plea. The High Court hadn’t just dismissed it—it added a ₹1 lakh sting in the tail, calling his petition “misconceived.”
Modi had claimed that BCCI ought to foot the ED-imposed penalty for alleged FEMA violations during the 2009 South Africa edition of the IPL, a season already soaked in controversy and offshore cash trails.
In court, Modi’s legal team tried to pull Article 226 of the Constitution into the game, arguing that a writ petition was appropriate and pointing out that others—like former BCCI head N Srinivasan—had scored interim relief in similar ED penalty matters.
The judges weren’t exactly bowled over. “Why didn’t you get interim relief then?” they asked, bluntly.
Modi’s lawyer dodged a straight answer: “It’s personal… But in fairness, the same interim order protects others and directed BCCI to deposit ₹10 crore.”
He then pitched for a fallback: “If the appeal doesn’t work out, I should at least be allowed to file a civil suit.”
That’s when the Court tossed him a lifeline—“Withdraw this and your right to a civil suit stays intact.”
So ended the innings in the top court, with a diplomatic nudge to restart from the civil courts’ crease. The Supreme Court noted on record that Modi’s lawyer had “very fairly” agreed to pursue civil remedies if the constitutional writ route was blocked.
The ₹10.65 crore penalty was just one slice of a much bigger pie. The ED’s 2018 crackdown imposed a total penalty of ₹121.56 crore, with both the BCCI and its former top brass—including Srinivasan—on the charge sheet. The core issue? An alleged ₹243 crore routed outside India during IPL 2009, in violation of FEMA.
For Lalit Modi, the legal overs continue. But for now, it’s game paused, not over.
