In smoothly coordinated move that cut across party lines, the Indian cricket fan was handed a fait accompli at the BCCI’s emergency working committee meet in Chennai on Sunday.
Shrugging off the heat and fury created by the spot-fixing and betting scandal, the cricket board tweaked its top layer with under-fire president N. Srinivasan “stepping aside”, leaving former BCCI strongman Jagmohan Dalmiya to oversee a working group till the inquiry into charges against a team principal and two teams in the Indian Premier League is completed.
What left even hardened BCCI watchers flabbergasted was the move’s brazenness. With one group, said to be led by Maharashtra strongman Sharad Pawar, pushing hard for concrete action, backroom tactics involving Delhi-based politicians like senior BCCI vice-president Arun Jaitley, recently-resigned IPL commissioner Rajeev Shukla and BCCI joint secretary Anurag Thakur made sure no major upheavals took place.
Going into the meeting, the Pawar West Zone group was pushing for Mr Srinivasan to step down and bringing in former BCCI chief Shashank Manohar in his place to begin a cleanup of the game that has seen its image battered by three cricketers being arrested for spot-fixing and the Chennai Super Kings team principal in police custody for betting.
Instead, they were outflanked by a North-East-South combine, with BJP leaders Jaitley and Thakur, both working committee members, proposing Mr Dalmiya’s name at the meeting. Vidharba’s Manohar barely rated a mention.
Punjab Cricket Association chief Inderjit Singh Bindra, himself a former BCCI president, was the lone voice seeking Mr Srinivasan’s resignation at the “five-star” Chennai meeting. He later termed the day’s proceedings a “pre-planned drama” by what he described as “the Delhi Gang”.
Interestingly, it was Mr Jaitley who had first suggested that Mr Srinivasan step aside at a dinner hosted by Mr Dalmiya in Kolkata on the eve of the IPL final last Sunday.
Mr Manohar’s name had been put forward thanks to his clean image. Ahead of the meet, it appeared Mr Pawar’s man would find some backers. Instead, what transpired was a meek acceptance of Mr Jaitley’s suggestions, with some murmuring, but no concrete opposition.
Little wonder therefore that Mr Srinivasan later told a TV news channel that there was “no acrimony” at the meeting where he achieved his aim of also continuing to represent India at the International Cricket Council, besides not even being asked to resign.
Former BCCI treasurer Ajay Shirke, who along with Sanjay Jagdale (former secretary) resigned two days ago in protest at the happenings in the BCCI and put pressure on Mr Srinivasan to step down, later said it had been a “a step backwards”.
The Pune-based Mr Shirke, who along with Mr Jagdale rejected a request to rejoin the working committee in their previous respective roles, told a TV channel he was “extremely sad, disappointed and concerned about the future of the BCCI”.
Mr Shirke, who is also close to Mr Pawar, added: “There were a few too who were whispering and murmuring for Srinivasan to resign, but I.S. Bindra was the only one to openly speak up for it. There was no significant opposition to Srinivasan at the meeting.”
On what would happen now, he said: “Wherever presidential power is to be exercised, which is substantial in the BCCI constitution, Mr Jagmohan Dalmiya will take matters to Mr Srinivasan for a sign-off. That is the ‘arrangement’ that has been made.”
Mr Shirke went on to add: “Srinivasan remains the president. This arrangement that has been worked out is not in conformity with the BCCI constitution. Mr Dalmiya will collate all the information of the working committee and then take it to him (Srinivasan).”