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Two-time Indian Premier League champions Chennai Super Kings has been valued at just Rs 5 lakh by its owners, India Cements.
According to reports, India Cements sold the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led IPL franchise to a subsidiary in February at that absurd price.
As per the Board of Control for Cricket in India rules, five per cent of the sale price of any team must be given to the board. If this valuation of Rs 5 lakh is to be accepted, then the BCCI got just Rs 25,000 from the sale of Chennai Super Kings.
However, it was reported that the IPL Governing Council refused to accept this valuation and hasn't given its consent to the sale of the team.
The Indian Express revealed that the sale was done at an IPL Governing Council meeting in February, when the BCCI was in limbo.
After the Supreme Court issued an order of Narayanaswami Srinivasan's ineligibility to stand for re-election as BCCI president, elections were held in March and the new IPL Governing Council, under current president Jagmohan Dalmiya, met on Monday, when this huge discrepancy was spotted.
The Indian Express reported that "Jyothiraditya Scindia, who was present as a special invitee, was the first to raise the issue, insisting that it wasn't possible for CSK to be valued at Rs 5 lakh when India Cements has been paying an annual franchise fee of Rs 40 crore to the BCCI".
According to a report published in India Today, in January this year, the Supreme Court ruled that BCCI officials had to pick between running cricket or owning teams. Since Srinivasan was accused of conflict of interest, the court order prompted the transfer of CSK ownership.
CSK was transferred to a subsidiary called Chennai Super Kings Cricket Ltd.
The India Cements Board decided that the subsidiary will be owned by existing shareholders on a proportionate basis. While 70 per cent of India Cements shares are held by public, promoters hold 28 per cent and Srinivasan holds 0.14 per cent.