Govt Probes Irregularities in IPL, Recovers Income Tax from BCCI

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Union Minister of Finance, Pranab Mukherjee, today said that the government is looking into the complaints related to financial irregularities in the organisation of the popular T20 cricket tournament, Indian Premier League (IPL).
During the Question Hour in the Rajya Sabha, he replied to a query regarding foreign investments in some IPL franchisees by stating that the Enforcement Directorate will probe the complaints of irregularities, while other agencies are investigating allegations of “criminal activities”. He clarified that neither BCCI nor IPL had reported low income to evade tax.
Until 2006, BCCI was granted tax exemption for being a registered body. After an order from the Allahabad High Court, it lost this status. Tax exemption was withdrawn in December 2009 w.e.f. June 1, 2006 and the government demanded tax payment amounting to Rs 375.16 crore for Assessment Years 2007-08 and 2008-09. Of this, Rs 249 crore has been recovered from BCCI. IPL is a part of BCCI, and those taken as franchise are not exempt from income tax.