Bombay High Court Refuses To Grant Interim Relief To OCI Cricketers Seeking To Play Domestic Tournaments

Observing that allowing OCI cardholders to play in domestic cricket tournaments in India would come at the cost of Indian nationals, the Bombay High Court recently declined to grant interim relief to a group of Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) challenging a Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) resolution barring them from participating in such tournaments

A division bench of Justice M S Sonak and Justice Advait M Sethna observed that the petitioners had not made out a case of manifest arbitrariness or met the higher threshold required for an interim mandatory injunction.

“A case of prima facie manifest arbitrariness has not been made out. A case with a standard higher than the normal prima facie case has not been established. The question of irreparable prejudice cannot be considered only from the perspective of the Petitioners,” the bench noted.

The case pertains to a resolution passed by the BCCI on December 18, 2023, requiring all players in domestic cricket tournaments to hold Indian passports. This effectively disqualifies OCI cardholders, including several young cricketers who had previously been permitted to participate. The petitioners challenged this change, arguing it unfairly disrupted their cricketing careers.

Petitioners contended that the decision was arbitrary, particularly since OCIs had previously been allowed to compete. He cited judgments from the Punjab & Haryana High Court and the Supreme Court to support the argument that such exclusions had been found unreasonable in comparable contexts, including in NEET. They also argued that denying young athletes the opportunity to compete in domestic cricket violated their rights under Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution.

Opposing the plea, BCCI, defended the resolution as a policy decision taken in the interest of Indian cricket. He stated that since only Indian citizens are eligible to represent the national team, participation in domestic cricket, used as a feeder for national selection should logically be restricted to Indian nationals.

In its order, the Court dismissed the interim application, noting that the relief sought would effectively amount to allowing the main petition.

"At this stage, we are not fully apprised of the impact that such an order would have on players, who are already Indian nationals," the bench said.

"Because allowing the Petitioners to participate in domestic tournaments would, to some extent, be at a cost of the Indian nationals, who would then proportionately not find a place in the team.", it added.

The Court, however, permitted the petitioners to make a representation to the BCCI for prospective relief and urged the cricketing body to decide the matter swiftly.

“The BCCI must endeavour to take an expeditious decision on such representation because ultimately, they are dealing with the hopes and aspirations of young children, who we presume have been working hard to excel in cricket. The BCCI may consider whether any relief could be provided to these children, given the circumstances in which they are placed.”

The main petition has been listed for admission on October 17, 2025.

Case Name: Kavin Kartik & Ors. The Board of Control for Cricket in India

Case No: WRIT PETITION (L) NO. 22903 OF 2024

Date of Order: 26 September 2025

For Petitioner (Kavin Kartik) : Advocate Kunal Cheema along with advocate Datta Mane.

For Respondent (BCCI): Senior Advocate Birendra Saraf along with advocates Ankit Lohia, Ranjit Shetty, Tejas Gokhale instructed by Argus Partners

Click Here To Read/Download Order