SPO-STADIUM-LENDERS
- Country:
- India
A cricket stadium in Pune has been
taken over symbolically by lenders for non-payment of a Rs
69.53 crore loan by the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA).
The state cricket association blamed its financial
troubles on non-receipt of payments from the BCCI for the last
10 months.
MCA International Stadium, located at Gahunje on the
outskirts of Pune, has hosted a Test match and one-day
international matches in the past.
It last hosted an international match on October 27
when West Indies defeated India by 43 runs in the third of the
five-match ODI series.
The stadium, set in picturesque surroundings,
regularly hosts domestic matches including Ranji Trophy games
and has hosted Indian Premier Leaue T20 games too.
MCA secretary Riyaz Bagwan claimed that the bankers
assured that matches will be allowed to be held at the ground.
State-run Bank of Maharashtra is the lead bank in the
consortium which has loaned money to the cricket body, while
the other lenders are Bank of Baroda and Andhra Bank (both
state-run) and the private sector Karnataka Bank.
As the lead bank, Bank of Maharashtra had asked the
MCA to repay the money under the Sarfaesi Act in August.
As the MCA was unable to repay, the underlying
security has been "symbolically taken over" by the consortium
of lenders, Bank of Maharashtra said in a newspaper notice.
The notice has been issued by an assistant general
manager of the bank's branch at Deccan Gymkhana in Pune.
A six-acre land parcel adjoining the stadium located
off the Mumbai-Pune Express Highway has also been
"symbolically taken-over".
The MCA owes interest of Rs 29.26 crore on the loan
and separately owes interest of Rs 30.65 crore for a loan from
Bank of Baroda, Rs 5.44 crore in interest to Karnataka Bank
and Rs 4.18 crore in unpaid interest to Bank of Maharashtra,
the notice said.
Bagwan said until the BCCI gives them funds, they
won't be able to repay the dues.
"When BCCI releases funds, then only we can make
payments. Since last January we have not received any funds
from the BCCI. We had six IPL matches (of Chennai Super
Kings), so we could sustain cricket and everything. But after
that, unfortunately, we could not pay," Bagwan said.
He claimed that there has been no response from the
BCCI's CoA despite him writing to them twice.
"After that I twice wrote to the Committee of
Administrators. I met CoA and Saba Karim (BCCI GM). During the
(India-West Indies) match, I told Saba Karim that the matter
was serious. The CoA asked me to mail them again. But until
now we have not received any money," he added.
Bagwan claimed that the banks have assured him that
matches could be conducted on the ground.
"That they (banks) have assured me that you can
conduct the matches at the ground," Bagwan added.
(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
- READ MORE ON:
- West Indies cricket team
- India
- Prime Minister of India
- Prime minister
- Karnataka Bank
- Maharashtra Cricket Association
- Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act
- 2002
- Ranji Trophy
- Deccan Gymkhana
- Bank of Maharashtra
- Mumbai Pune Expressway
- Bank of Baroda
- Sports News
- PTI News