New Delhi/Mumbai: Less than a month after he was suspended as the IPL Commissioner and served a chargesheet by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, Lalit Modi is ready with his defence.
Modi responded to the first showcause notice served to him for alleged financial irregularities on Saturday with a staggering 10,000-page reply which was carried into the BCCI headquarters in six large cartons.
Modi, who had got an extension of five days from May 10 deadline, submitted his reply through his lawyers, who brought in the papers in four cars amidst the media frenzy at the Cricket Centre, the Board's headquarters.
BCCI Chief Administrative Officer Ratnakar Shetty received the papers and documents on behalf of the Board.
Modi's lawyer Memmood S Abdi did not elaborate the content. But according to sources, Modi has refuted all the five charges levelled against him by the BCCI.
"These are quasi-judicial proceedings hence it is for the BCCI to share contents of our reply with the media," Modi's lawyer Abdi said. "We have given a clarification on all charges. The showcause should be dropped now. The allegations made by the BCCI are based on hearsay and Modi became fall guy."
"There is no scope for the BCCI to keep the charges alive. The BCCI didn't provide documents to many allegations that were made," Abdi further said.
Modi's legal team has also prepared a detailed dossier that is likely to focus on counter-charges against two members of the IPL Governing Council.
BCCI administrative officer Ratnakar Shetty said the board will follow established procedure about Modi's reply. The voluminous reply will now put the ball in BCCI's court as they first have to scrutinise the papers and then decide the future course of action after consulting their own lawyers.
The tech-savvy Modi tweeted about his reply to the BCCI charges against him, saying, "When anyone is falsely accused, it is their duty to respond and not react. So one responds by making all that is true available. That is what I did."
"It may be long. But it is there for all to see now. I will do a press conference at an appropriate time. It's best to allow my colleagues time to go through my reply," he further tweeted.
Modi was suspended on April 26, soon after the conclusion of the IPL-III final in Navi Mumbai by BCCI which sent him a show cause notice asking him to reply to a slew of charges relating to the conduct of the high-profile Twenty20 league.
Modi is accused of indulging in murky financial deals without the knowledge of the IPL Governing Council, bid-rigging and taking kickbacks from the TV rights and internet deals.
Modi's problems were compounded when he was slapped with a second show cause notice by the Board for allegedly trying to provoke English counties to revolt against their parent body, the ECB, and start a parallel Twenty20 league.
Now the board's three-man disciplinary committee, comprising President Shashank Manohar and two vice-presidents - Arun Jaitley and Chirayu Amin, will take a decision on the matter. The panel is expected to meet in mid-June to decide on the issue.
(With inputs from PTI)
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