Mumbai T20 League: A month has gone by, players and coaches not yet paid

It's nearly a month since the inaugural T20 Mumbai League concluded, but the 119 players, coaches and support staff members are yet to receive their dues. On Friday, former Mumbai wicketkeeper and coach Sulakshan Kulkarni shot a letter to the Bombay High Court-appointed Committee of Administrators (CoA), urging it to look into the issue of pending payments.

On April 3, the Bombay High Court decided to appoint former judges, retired Justice Hemant Gokhale and retired Justice VM Kanade, as administrators to implement the Justice Lodha Committee reforms at MCA. The new administrators took charge on April 11. "As per my contractual agreement with the franchise, March 31 was the last day before which all dues had to be cleared. I have followed it up with my team owner and they claim to have deposited the money [of all our players, coaches and support staff] with the MCA. Since then, I have been following up with MCA's joint secretaries.

Sulakshan Kulkarni

Sulakshan calls for action
"It's over a couple of weeks now, but we still remain unpaid for our services rendered. It's my humble request to look into this aspect at the earliest," Kulkarni, who is to receive Rs 4 lakh for his coaching role, wrote in his letter, a copy of which is with mid-day.

Former India batsman Vinod Kambli, the mentor of Shivaji Park Lions, who finished runner-up to Triumph Knights in the final, also confirmed that he had not yet received his payment. "I think everyone is still awaiting their dues," said Kambli. Several players also confirmed to mid-day that they were yet to receive their dues, though they were hesitant to come on record about the same. As per the league's rules, the six franchises have deposited the players and support staff's remuneration, amounting to around R2.40 crore, with MCA, who were to disburse it.

Ball in CoA's court
The delay in disbursement is due to the Bombay High Court's appointment of the CoA, said a former MCA official, who was part of the decision-making process of the T20 Mumbai League. "We have received all payments. However, because of the petition filed in the High Court, it was decided to leave it to the administrators. We have put it up to them to clear the payments. Once the accounts of the T20 Mumbai League are cleared, that should happen," said the official. Meanwhile, the CoA claimed that they are yet to receive any complaint. "If we get a complaint in writing, we will definitely look into it," retired Justice Hemant Gokhale told mid-day.

Also Read: T20 Mumbai League: Suryakumar Yadav leads Triumph Knights to win title

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