The Bangladesh Cricket Board decided to serve a legal notice to the franchises of the Bangladesh Premier League today asking them to pay their franchise fee or face expulsion
from the tournament, the BCB officials said on Saturday.
The BCB is mulling a similar move over the Game On Sports Management, an event management company which organised the tournament, in a week’s time unless they clear their outstanding dues.
The franchises and Game On owes the BCB Tk 41 crore, however, neither of the parties disbursed a single penny for this season, putting the cricket’s oversight body on a knife’s edge as it is the guarantor of the players’ payment.
‘We will issue the legal notice tomorrow (Sunday) against the franchises,’ Afzalur Rahman Sinha, chairman of the BPL governing council told New Age on Saturday.
‘We are yet to receive the Tk 22 crore from the franchises as their participation fees despite reminding them repeatedly,’ said Afzalur.
‘Firstly, their franchise ownership will be scratched but that won’t relieve them of pressure as we will also ask for compensation,’ he said.
Afzalur was equally disturbed with Game On for their failure to adhere to their commitment and warned a similar action is on the cards.
‘Despite several attempts, we are yet to get hold of their major share-holder Bappy (Enayetur Rahman) who is currently abroad,’ said Afzalur.
‘I just came to know that they asked for increasing the time limit for another week,’ he added.
Game On are expected to pay Tk 19 crore for the second edition of the BPL unlike the first edition where they paid the money on behalf of the franchises.
The new governing council tweaked the agreement clause after deciding to recover the money directly from the franchises.
Earlier, Game On Sports Management failed to clear the payments of the tournament’s second edition after the organisation was unsuccessful in meeting the deadline that ended on March 28 which was later extended for a month.
Afzalur hinted that the BCB might have to incur losses if the franchises are scrapped of their teams as they are the sole guarantor for the players’ payment that is yet to be cleared by any franchises till date.
‘The BCB might face some financial losses in order to maintain their commitment of clearing the dues of the players,’ he said.
newagebd
-With New Age input
