The Uttarakhand High Court has ordered the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to answer to a number of petitions alleging widespread financial irregularities at the Cricket Association of Uttarakhand (CAU). The issue revolves around allegations of wasted government cash, inflated expenses, and a lack of basic facilities for participants.
The dispute began when Sanjay Rawat, a Dehradun resident, and others filed petitions citing an audit report of the CAU’s accounts for the fiscal year 2024-25. The study, produced by an external chartered accountant, revealed suspicious expenditures, including a staggering INR 35 lakh invoiced as bananas to players. It also revealed that INR 6.4 crore was paid in event management fees, with INR 26.3 crore reported as tournament and trial expenses, up from INR 22.3 crore the previous year.
Petitioners claim state players never received promised facilities
These numbers grabbed attention, particularly because petitioners claimed that state players never received the promised facilities. Instead, the funds reserved for cricket development and player welfare appeared to have been directed off under inflated expense heads.
Hearing the petitions, Justice Manoj Kumar Tiwari issued notices to the BCCI, asking the national cricket body to explain its oversight role in the matter.
Petitioners accused CAU of spending crores on food and logistics, while players were not provided with proper training facilities, equipment, or support. Meanwhile, in a related petition, former CAU vice-president Surendra Bhandari alleged irregularities in awarding the tender for the upcoming Uttarakhand Premier League (UPL) 2025, scheduled to begin on September 23
According to him, the contract was granted to a single company without a transparent bidding process. He further mentioned that since BCCI formally recognized CAU in 2019, the association has received more than INR 22 crore in funding. However, much of this money was diverted for personal gain rather than infrastructure or talent development.
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