The BCCI will come under the purview of the National Sports Governance Bill, which will be introduced in Parliament on Wednesday. The cricket board will be required to take recognition from the proposed National Sports Board under the new legislation, even though it is not reliant on government funding.

Disclosing this, a top sports ministry official said on Tuesday that like all National Sports federations (NSFs), the BCCI will have to comply with the law of the land once this Bill becomes an Act. “They don’t take funding from the ministry, but an Act of Parliament applies to them. They will remain an autonomous body like all other NSFs, but their disputes, if any, will also come to the proposed National Sports Tribunal, which will become the dispute resolution body for sports issues ranging from elections to selection,” the official said.

He clarified that this Bill does not seek to have government control on any NSF. Government, he said, would be a facilitator in ensuring good governance, not an enforcer. The BCCI has become a part of Olympics after cricket was included in the 2028 Los Angeles Games, where it will be played in the T20 format. The long-awaited Sports Governance Bill seeks to institutionalise a strong framework for timely elections, administrative accountability, athlete welfare and reduction in litigation through a slew of measures.

The National Sports Board (NSB), appointed entirely by the Central government, will have sweeping powers to grant and even suspend recognition of federations based on complaints or “its own motion” for violations ranging from electoral irregularities to financial misappropriation. The Bill makes concessions on the issue of age cap of administrators by allowing those in the bracket of 70 to 75 to contest elections if international bodies concerned do not object. In electoral matters, the Bill will accept the “supremacy” of the Olympic Charter and the statutes of International Federations.

The proposed NSB will comprise a chairperson and its members will be appointed by the central government from “amongst persons of ability, integrity and standing”. The appointments would be done based on the recommendations of a search- cum-selection committee, according to the Bill, which has been finalised after extensive consultations with stakeholders and public inputs.

The selection committee would have the cabinet secretary or secretary, sports as chairperson, the Director General of the Sports Authority of India, two sports administrators who have each served as president or secretary general or treasurer of a national sports body and one eminent sportsperson who is a Dronacharya, Khel Ratna or Arjuna awardee.

“This is an athlete-centric Bill which will ensure stable administration, fair selection, safe sports and grievance redressal, NSF audits, proper accounting and better fund management. The National Sports Tribunal will ensure that there is no career damage to athletes due to delayed court cases. Even now 350 different court cases are in progress where the ministry is a party. This needs to end. As was mentioned in the draft released last year, the Board will have the power to grant recognition to NSFs and even constitute ad-hoc panels to run individual sports in case an NSF is suspended,” said the official.