SerpApi.Org
Former IPL chairman Lalit Modi has claimed a major legal victory after the Appellate Tribunal under SAFEMA set aside penalties imposed on him in connection with the 2009 Indian Premier League held in South Africa. The ruling came after more than 16 years of investigations and legal proceedings. According to Modi, the tribunal rejected the Enforcement Directorate's main argument by ruling that the foreign remittances linked to IPL 2009 were current account transactions, not capital account transactions. It also found that he was not responsible for the BCCI's FEMA compliance or given the financial powers alleged by the ED.
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Reacting to the ruling, Modi described it as the conclusion of the biggest legal dispute related to the 2009 IPL. "This marks the end of what has been the single most significant legal matter arising from the 2009 South Africa IPL."
He added, "For over sixteen years, I have consistently maintained one simple position: I acted in good faith, in the best interests of Indian cricket and the IPL, and committed no personal wrongdoing."
Modi also explained that shifting the tournament to South Africa was necessary because India's general elections made it impossible to host the event at home. "The successful staging of that season ensured that the IPL survived and ultimately became one of the world's most valuable sporting properties," he said.
Modi said he had cooperated fully throughout the lengthy legal process. "Throughout these proceedings, I have cooperated with the legal process and remained confident that the facts and the law would ultimately prevail."
Thanking his supporters, he expressed gratitude to "my legal team, my family, my friends and the many people who continued to believe in me during what has been an extraordinarily long journey."
Calling the ruling bigger than a personal victory, Modi said, "This judgment is not simply personal vindication. It reaffirms the importance of due process, objective legal analysis, and the principle that allegations must ultimately be tested against evidence and law." He concluded, "I have always believed that time is the greatest judge. Today, after more than sixteen years, that process has spoken."
