IPL founder Lalit Modi has decided to return to India after 16 years

Founder and former IPL chairman Lalit Modi said he plans to return to India after 16 years after receiving a major relief from the Appellate Tribunal in the 2009 Indian Premier League South Africa Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) case.

Modi, who has lived outside India since 2010, said the tribunal’s verdict ended a 16-year legal battle. He added that he hopes to return to India by the end of this year or early next year.

#WATCH | IPL founder and first chairman Lalit Modi will return to India.

He says: “I’m really happy with yesterday’s verdict. It was a really great day. I fought for 16 years and whatever I said to the media and everybody, it turned out to be true in the end. pic.twitter.com/QTN7VkzuEy— ANI (@ANI) July 22, 2026

“I am really happy with yesterday’s verdict. It was a really great day. I fought for 16 years and whatever I said to the media and everyone finally turned out to be true. I am really happy that the tribunal ruled in my favor. I was only concerned with the welfare of the IPL and nothing and nothing at all. This is the most expensive chapter that I have completed now. I am looking forward to coming back to India.”

Modi said he expects to return after the birth of his grandson later this year.

“I’ll be back probably late this year or early next year. My daughter is due in October with my grandson and hopefully everything will be fine and I’ll be back in India.”

The Smugglers and Foreign Exchange Manipulators (Forfeiture of Assets) Act (SAFEMA) Appellate Tribunal set aside most of the Directorate of Enforcement’s findings and sentences against Modi and other appellants in the main proceedings related to the 2009 IPL season in South Africa.

The tribunal ruled that there was no material to show that Modi was responsible for the alleged FEMA violations in the main proceedings. The verdict was handed down on July 16.

The case dates back to 2009, when The IPL was moved from India to South Africa as the tournament clashed with the general election. The Enforcement Directorate has initiated proceedings on foreign currency transfers for holding the tournament abroad, claiming that prior approval of the Reserve Bank of India is required.

Welcoming the verdict, Modi said the tribunal rejected the basis of the Enforcement Directorate’s case against him.

“The tribunal rejected the central premise on which the Enforcement Directorate’s case against me was built. It found that the main foreign remittances relating to the staging of the 2009 IPL in South Africa were current account transactions, not capital account transactions, overturning the foundations of earlier findings.”

The decision is a significant relief for Modi, who was the architect of the IPL and served as its first chairman and commissioner. He retired from India in 2010 after facing multiple investigations by the Directorate of Enforcement, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the Income Tax Department.

– The end

Published on:

22 Jul 2026 16:14 IST