New Delhi: A division bench of Delhi High Court on Wednesday restored the passport of former Indian Premier League (IPL) chief Lalit Modi, clearing the decks for his return to India from exile in England.
The regional passport office in Mumbai revoked Modi’s passport in March.
Modi, who was elected president of the Rajasthan Cricket Association but remains banned by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), challenged the single bench order that dismissed his plea challenging the revocation of his passport. He is facing an Enforcement Directorate (ED) probe into allegations of financial irregularities in the IPL.
Modi lives in England at the moment. The British government told the Ministry of External Affairs that Modi could continue to stay in the UK despite the cancellation of his passport by the Indian government. UK’s minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), while appreciating the “seriousness” of India’s concerns about Modi told MEA that various “legal constraints” prevented his immediate deportation.
The BCCI is against Modi’s return to Indian cricket, with him being at loggerheads with N. Srinivasan, the current chairman of International Cricket Council (ICC) and suspended president of BCCI. The board suspended RCA after it unanimously elected Modi as president on the basis of a controversial Rajasthan Sports Act.
