BCCI elections in spotlight ahead of September AGM
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is under pressure to conduct its upcoming elections in accordance with the soon-to-be-notified National Sports Governance Act. The Sports Ministry, which is preparing for the act’s full implementation within six months, is pushing for early adoption across all National Sports Federations (NSFs).
According to a PTI report, the Ministry has communicated that BCCI elections should ideally be conducted under the new law—though a temporary fallback on the Lodha Committee recommendations remains possible if the detailed rules aren’t notified before the polls.
“Ideally the elections should be held as per the act but in case the rules are not notified in time, they may go ahead as per Lodha Committee recommendations,” the source said.
“Once the rules are notified, all NSFs, including the BCCI, will have to hold elections as per its norms,” the source said.
The BCCI’s Annual General Meeting is scheduled for the last week of September, with elections on the agenda. President Roger Binny‘s tenure has ended after he crossed the age threshold of 70, making him ineligible under the current Lodha rules. However, the new act reportedly allows individuals between 70 and 75 to contest elections—if the governing body of their sport, in this case the ICC, has no such age limit, which it doesn’t.
So far, the BCCI has not named an interim president or issued a formal update on how it will proceed.
Legal oversight and court scrutiny in parallel cases
The Sports Ministry is also monitoring electoral practices across other federations. The recent Boxing Federation of India (BFI) elections took place without ministry or IOA observers, due to an ongoing court case involving disputed constitutional amendments.
“We have already told the Delhi High Court that we do not think that the procedure followed in the conduct of these elections is right. We will wait now and see what the court says,” the ministry source said.
The next hearing in the BFI case is set for September 23. The court’s position could influence how strictly the new governance norms are enforced going forward.
Youth protection, gaming reform, and accountability in focus
Beyond elections, the Ministry has also voiced support for the recently passed Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025, which bans real money gaming and classifies it as a public health concern.
“We have to protect youngsters who are getting addicted to this and wasting away time, and money,” the source said.
Meanwhile, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Sports criticized the Sports Authority of India (SAI) as “critically” under-funded and flagged underperformance in the government’s flagship Khelo India scheme. The Ministry acknowledged the report’s validity and promised corrective action.
“We would never call a report of this stature wrong. If there are shortcomings, they will be addressed,” the source said.
With elections looming and national policies shifting, the coming weeks could prove pivotal—not just for cricket administration, but for broader governance reforms across Indian sport.
