Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) cardholders are not allowed to compete in domestic tournaments, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) informed the Bombay High Court on Friday. It also clarified that only Indian nationals are chosen to represent India on the national team.
Twelve teenage cricket players with OCI cards filed a plea, which was being heard by a division bench consisting of Justice Gautam Ankhad and Acting Chief Justice Ravindra Ghuge.
The appeal contested the BCCI’s 2023 resolution that prohibited foreign passport holders—including those with Person of Indian Origin (PIO) or OCI cards—from competing in board-organized competitions.
The petition, which was submitted in July 2024, said that the BCCI’s ruling changed the requirements that previously permitted PIO and OCI cardholders to participate in board-organized competitions.
“The sudden change in the eligibility criteria is arbitrary, without application of mind and, hence, violative of Article 14 of the Constitution of India,” the petition said as per Hindustan Times.
The petitioners said that it was “gross injustice and discrimination” to deny the children of OCIs appropriate extracurricular and athletic opportunities, which are “essential for the growth and overall development of any human being,” given that they had been residing in India for years.
“The parents of the petitioners are on the same pedestal in terms of contribution to the nation in terms of direct and indirect taxes, as any other citizen is. Should their children not be entitled to be treated equally? Would it not be harsh to expect that they may have to compulsorily leave the country to pursue their dreams out of India and leave behind their family?” the petition said.
It further stated that sending the petitioners overseas would put a significant financial strain on their Indian parents.
In a previous hearing last year, the BCCI said that it had already told OCI cardholders that obtaining Indian citizenship would not limit their ability to compete in competitions. It stated that the board, which is made up of subject-matter specialists, made this choice collectively.
The petitioners told the court at Friday’s session that several of them had trained and competed in India for years and had already applied for Indian citizenship, but their applications were still pending.
They emphasized that OCI cardholders were previously allowed to compete in local competitions, making the BCCI’s decision “manifestly arbitrary.”
The court, however, was of the opinion that the players’ future prospects would be better abroad.
“Why don’t you play there, as there can be better chances for you to get selected, because in India everyone plays cricket. India is your parents’ motherland; come back to India. But if your country is not letting you renounce your citizenship, that is a different matter,” the bench stated.
The court stated that the subject required careful examination, ordered both parties to submit their views in writing, and listed the petition for additional hearing on August 13.
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