No Tax Exemption Could See BCCI Lose Rs 450 Crore

Guaranteeing tax exemption for the ICC events has been a long thorn in the BCCI’s flesh since 2016. Five years ago, the West Indies’ Carlos Brathwaite pulled off a title-winning Herculean effort, clouting four sixes off Ben Stokes in the last over of the Twenty20 World Cup final at the Eden Gardens. Brathwaite’s big hits won the title for the Windies, but the BCCI lost $23.75 million because it did not furnish tax exemption to the ICC. As a consequence, Star India, as per law of the land, withheld 10% of the money it owed to the ICC, for the services it rendered. And the ICC adjusted the sizeable sum from the money it had to disburse to the BCCI. Five years later, in 2021, the BCCI looks at a potential drop in receipts between $50 and $60 million (Rs 375-450 crore) in the event of it not being able to guarantee tax exemption for the Twenty20 World Cup to be held in India in October-November. The drop in receipts could rise to Rs 1,000-crore plus, if the script continues for the ICC Men’s World Cup 2023 awarded to the BCCI. The BCCI’s tax exemption woes began in 2017 when the Finance Ministry — under Arun Jaitley — put a “no exemption” remark on the file!