(Credit- Sportzpics)
The Delhi High Court has rejected a public interest litigation that aimed to mandate the Board of Control for Cricket in India and Delhi Capitals to remunerate the Delhi Police for the security services rendered during Indian Premier League matches.
The petitioner, identifying as a social activist, argued that the matter of compensating for police deployment during IPL matches in Mumbai and Jaipur was deliberated upon by the respective high courts.
A panel led by Acting Chief Justice Manmohan noted that both the Central government and the Delhi Police have opted not to levy any charges for the IPL matches conducted in the national capital. The panel deemed this as a policy decision that does not warrant intervention by the court.
“We do not find any merit in the submission of the petitioner that there is notional amount due and payable by Respondent Nos. 1 and 2 to Union of India and/or Delhi Police for the past matches held until 2022. The present petition is accordingly dismissed,” the bench, also comprising Justice Manmeet PS Arora, said in an order passed on May 28.
However, the court clarified that its ruling should not be interpreted as preventing or prohibiting the Delhi Police from invoicing any fees for past or future services, should they choose to do so.
The petitioner argued that there was no justification for the Delhi Police not to bill the BCCI and Delhi Capitals for the security provided during IPL matches.
He pointed out that IPL matches have been held in Delhi since 2008, and if the police were to recover fees for all matches held to date, it would amount to a substantial sum.
The representative for the Centre stated that there is no outstanding amount owed by the BCCI and Delhi Capitals to the Delhi Police, as no fee was agreed upon for the security arrangements during IPL matches.
The court noted that in the case of Maharashtra Police, documents indicated that they had reached an agreement regarding payment for providing security during IPL matches held in Mumbai. This led to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in the Bombay High Court concerning purported non-payment, which was resolved after the payment was settled.
Likewise, the court observed that the Rajasthan High Court had addressed issues of outstanding payments by sponsors and organizers of IPL matches for services provided by the Rajasthan Police.
“However, in the present case, as noted above and admitted by the Petitioner, the Union of India and Delhi Police had elected not to charge any fee from Respondent Nos. 1 and 2 for the IPL matches held at Delhi. Consequently, there are no outstanding dues payable by Respondent Nos. 1 and 2 to either Union of India or Delhi Police,” the court said.
“We are of the considered opinion that no directions, as prayed for in the present petition, are maintainable,” the court stated.
