Top BCCI officials in Supreme Court’s firing line
Supreme Court is to take action on the Committee of Administrators’ status report asking for the sacking of BCCI members opposing the implementation of Lodha reforms.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday will deliberate on the future of three top BCCI office-bearers who have been playing proxy roles in the current cricket Board administration.
Acting BCCI secretary Amitabh Choudhary, treasurer Anirudh Chaudhary and acting president CK Khanna are under the scanner following the Committee of Administrators’ status report on the Board’s continuing defiance to implement the Lodha panel recommendations.
The BCCI has become a can of worms and with cricket administration in the doldrums, the CoA is urging the Supreme Court to order a thorough clean up as mandated in the Lodha panel reforms of July last year.
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The Vinod Rai committee of administrators, in its fifth status report, has been scathing on how BCCI officials have ‘wasted’ money on travel, hotels and allowances.
Speaking to the Hindustan Times on Monday, CoA chairman Rai said that in the absence of a working committee, the power to manage BCCI affairs lie with the administrators and not on the office-bearers, who are seemingly trying to pull the shots and limit the role of the CEO Rahul Johri.
Johri has found himself at the wrong end of the BCCI office-bearers, even being denied entry in the BCCI’s recent SGM that discussed the practical difficulties of executing the Lodha reforms.
Affiliation to states
The BCCI has also come under fire for no action on recognition to states under NADP (New Area Development Programme) as well as suspended former full member, Bihar.
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In a letter to the CoA, the Cricket Association of Bihar has argued that even though the Supreme Court has found merit in Lodha panel recommendation regarding representation to all states, the current Ranji Trophy season will feature only 28 teams and doesn’t include states like Bihar and North-Eastern States of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Nagaland.
The Bihar body has argued that since the concept of affiliate member doesn’t exist, all the states need to be given full membership and a chance to participate.
The matter will be heard in the Supreme Court on Wednesday afternoon.
Demand for e-Auction
The Court will also hear a plea demanding annulment of BCCI’s decision to allow closed tenders for IPL media rights. Although the Lodha panel has asked for e-auctions, the BCCI decided to go ahead with walk-in tenders.
“The recommendation of Lodha panel was that the BCCI should rely on IT services wherever possible,” lawyer Ishkaran Bhandari, representing the petitioner, told Hindustan Times.
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“Since this is a closed bid, everything is open to manipulation.”
The auction results are to come out on August 28.
While defending the decision to have closed tenders, the IPL Governing Council had told Hindustan Times in May that it opted for the ‘tried and tested method’.