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Tuesday, Feb 22, 2005

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ESPN charge against Zee Telefilms

By A. Subramani

CHENNAI, FEB. 21. Zee Telefilms Limited (ZTL), which has moved the Madras High Court against the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) decision to cancel the tender process for telecast rights, did not come with "complete candour and honesty," senior counsel for ESPN-Star told the Madras High Court today.

Arguing for ESPN, senior counsel Iqbal Chagla submitted before Justice K.P. Sivasubramaniam that ZTL had wilfully failed to furnish "all relevant materials" to the controversy before the court and hence its petition could be dismissed without any relief. "It has supplied false and misleading materials," he alleged.

In support of his argument, Mr. Chagla denied the ZTL submission that neither ESPN nor the BCCI had raised the issue of eligibility of ZTL in participating in the tender prior to ESPN's writ petition before the Bombay High Court.

He said that on August 16, two days after the tender process, ESPN had written to the BCCI protesting against the participation of ZTL in the process. ZTL was put on notice about the fact on September 6, when ESPN filed the writ petition before the Bombay High Court.

Though ZTL was duty-bound to inform the Madras High Court that it had been informed of the opposition to its participation, it had failed to bring the fact to the court's notice, he said.

Similarly, ZTL had not disclosed the entire details regarding its two pleas before the Supreme Court.

All petitioners before any court of law are bound to tell the court whether similar pleas, with similar prayers, were pending or disposed of in any other court of law.

Though ZTL's special leave petition against the Bombay High Court's order permitting ESPN to withdraw its writ petition was pending before the apex court, ZTL had not told the Madras High Court about it. This too would amount to wilful suppression of relevant materials, he submitted.

As regards ZTL's arguments on the payment of $ 20 million towards advance "as per agreement," Mr. Chagla said the draft letter of intent sent to ZTL by the BCCI merely sought ZTL's acceptance to certain conditions laid down therein.

"Had ZTL sent its acceptance, as required, there is some justification for its prayer to enforce the contract." Instead, ZTL only replied that it was ready to discuss certain points.

Since ZTL had failed in its "high duty" to bring all relevant matters to the notice of the court, and had instead suppressed the documents, the petition could be dismissed without any relief, he maintained.

The arguments would continue tomorrow.

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