NEW DELHI: A defiant Indian Premier League (IPL) commissioner, Mr Lalit Modi on Wednesday made it clear that he will not attend the April 26 IPL Governing Council meeting convened apparently to decide his fate, saying he considers it “unauthorised” and threatened to disclose the stake-holding pattern of the teams in the league.

Under pressure to quit, Mr Modi told the BCCI that only he had the powers to call such a meeting. He wanted the Governing Council meeting to be convened on May 1. However, the BCCI is going ahead with the Monday deliberations, saying that its secretary was fully empowered to convene the meeting which may even oust him in his absence. The BCCI also disapproved Mr Modi’s plans to disclose the details of share-holding of the team owners on the ground that it was a complex issue that needs to be considered in detail.
In a communication to BCCI president, Mr Shashank Manohar on Wednesday, Mr Modi said “till post 26th I do not propose to attend any unauthorised meeting.” Disagreeing with him on convening of the Governing Council meeting on Monday, Mr Modi said the BCCI secretary has never called a council meeting since inception nor is he the convenor. Mr Modi said, “If the meeting does take place on April 26 instead of on May 1 as I have asked, it will be deemed to be unofficial.” He made it clear that he was not against the meeting but he wanted time to prepare the agenda, circulate it and also make documents available. He told Mr Manohar that he was misinformed that he (Modi) had time.
At the peak of his spat with former Union minister, Mr Shashi Tharoor last week that triggered charges and counter-charges over ownership patterns of the teams, Mr Modi had sent an e-mail to Board president and other members that he was prepared to disclose the entire share-holding of each franchise in view of the questions being raised on the ownership issues. A copy of the communication was sent to all the franchise owners.
However, BCCI president Mr Shashank Manohar responded to Mr Modi’s communication, saying “ownership is a complex issue and its legal complications need to be discussed. Ownership can be discussed at the GC meeting and considered there.” Mr Manohar’s opinion was supported by several Governing Council members including Mr Ravi Shastri, Mr Arun Jaitley, Mr Niranjan Shah, Mr Sanjay Jagdale, Mr Rajiv Shukla and Mr Chirayu Amin, sources said. Sources close to Mr Manohar said Mr Modi was told that unilateral disclosure of ownership pattern would be in violation of the confidentiality clause in the agreement between the teams and the IPL.
In order to have access to papers and a discussion on them, there was a meeting needed in Mumbai. “We don’t need to take any action in haste.” Mr Manohar is believed to have told Mr Modi what was he doing all the three years about the ownership issue that he was in a hurry now. Only after the media exposed some issues, he is talking of disclosing details. The BCCI president also pointed out that his tweet on Kochi team ownership had already triggered a legal notice from one of the Kochi franchises on the ground it violated the confidentiality clause. For him to have jumped the gun was a mistake, Mr Manohar is believed to have told him adding that heavens would not have fallen in ten days.
However, BCCI sources expressed confidence that Mr Modi would be voted out of the post notwithstanding his defiance and raising procedural issues. The government also appeared to be concerned at the highest level with the Prime Minister, Dr Mammohan Singh discussing the IPL row with senior BCCI official, Mr Rajiv Shukla, a Modi detractor. Though he refused to disclose what he discussed with the Prime Minister, he told reporters that the BCCI would not hesitate to take “drastic” steps, implying the ouster of Mr Modi to clear the mess. Indications emerged that Mr Sharad Pawar and other influential members of the BCCI, including president Mr Shashank Manohar, secretary Mr N Srinivasan and IPL vice-chairman, Mr Niranjan Shah were gunning for his removal.