Lodha effect: Bigwigs Pawar, Manohar, Thakur set to lose in power game
Delhi on Monday. PTI
The Supreme Court-appointed Justice RM Lodha Committee might leave some
of the key BCCI administrators “jobless” if its recommendations on
office-bearers’ age and tenure are implemented in the coming days.
The panel, largely taking a cue from the provisions defined in the
revised draft of the National Sports Development Code, has suggested an
eligibility criteria for the BCCI office-bearers, limiting a tenure of
three years for each administrators and a cooling-off period to prevent
them from holding consecutive terms. In addition to that, the criteria
states that an office-bearer “must not be above the age of 70, must not
be a minister or a government servant and must not have held BCCI office
for a cumulative period of nine years”.
The worst-affected would be [resident Shashank Manohar, secretary Anurag
Thakur, treasurer Aniruddh Chaudhary and joint secretary Amitabh
Chaudhary. The committee’s recommendations are likely to be implemented
in toto after the Apex Court takes up the matter.
In the given scenario, Manohar will not be eligible to contest another
election to the top post as he is serving his second tenure as the BCCI
president. And, with ‘one state one vote’ rule likely to be implemented,
the Vidarbha Cricket Association, whom Manohar is the president, would
become an ‘Associate Member’ without voting rights.
Delhi on Monday. PTI
Sabi Hussain
Tribune News Service
NEW DELHI, JANUARY 4
Key recommendations of Lodha panel
- No office-bearer can be a minister or govt servant
- Separate governing bodies for the IPL and the BCCI
- Limited autonomy for IPL Governing Council
- No BCCI office-bearer can have more than two consecutive terms
- No BCCI office-bearer can hold office for more than three terms
- No BCCI office-bearer can hold two posts at the same time
- Constitution and establishment of a players association
- A steering committee headed by former home secretary GK Pillai with Mohinder Amarnath, Diana Eduljee and Anil Kumble as members
- One Association of each state will be full member and have the right to vote
- Legalisation of betting
- No more zonal nomination for president’s post
- Restrict total tenure of office-bearers in any capacity to two terms, not exceeding six years. Tenure of president will not be longer than three years
- Only ex-cricketers in state associations and implementation of proper stadium rotation policy
- Legislature must consider bringing BCCI under purview of RTI Act
- Each selection committee to comprise only three members. Senior selection committee to be made up of former international Test cricketers, with the most capped former player among the 3 chairing the committee
- Protection of players’ interests by registering agents under prescribed norms of BCCI and players’ association
Thakur’s chair in danger
In case of secretary Anurag Thakur, he will have to relinquish his
president’s post in Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) which he
has been occupying since July 2000. He will also have to serve the
cooling-off period of three years after serving his term in the BCCI
till 2017. This means Thakur would become ineligible to hold any post in
the HPCA as he has been the president for over 15 years and will sit
out of the BCCI affairs for at least three years after his present term
expires.
Saurashtra Cricket Association chief Niranjan Shah (71), Mumbai Cricket
Association president Sharad Pawar (75), Tamil Nadu Cricket Association
(TNCA) chief N Srinivasan (71), Punjab Cricket Association’s (PCA) top
bosses MP Pandove and IS Bindra are also facing an exit from all
administrative jobs.
The same is the case with the Indian Premier League (IPL) chairman
Rajeev Shukla who will also become ineligible to hold the post of Uttar
Pradesh Cricket Association secretary. He, has been in office since
2005.
The Tribune has learnt that more than two-third of state units,
affiliated to the BCCI, will have to find new administrators if the
Lodha panel recommendations are implemented.
North Zone worst-affected
Out of the seven voting units from the North Zone, none will have the
present administrators unless Jammu & Kashmir Cricket Association
(JKCA) new president Iqbal Raza Ansari is able to resolve differences
with the parallel body led by former Union Minister Farooq Abdullah.
The controversial case of the DDCA is going to be automatically resolved
with Justice Lodha panel putting an end to “proxy” voting in cricket
bodies. President Sneh Bansal, vice president CK Khanna and Chetan
Chauhan have all been occupying their posts for many a decades now.
