Finally, it’s Indian cricket board president N Srinivasan who seemed to have had the last laugh. Not only did he not quit as the president but also gave his consent to have former BCCI president Jagmohan Dalmiya take care of the day-to-day affairs of the board.
The only thing that he did was ‘step aside’ and going by the BCCI statement he ‘won’t discharge his duties as the president of the board till such time that the probe is completed’.
As hinted by Express, there was nothing earth-shattering in the Working Committee meeting on Sunday. Except for former BCCI chief and Punjab Cricket Association president I S Bindra no one even confronted Srinivasan, who seemed to work according to a well-thought out strategy.
After his long defiance, Srinivasan relented only partially, but not without having his way. He agreed to stay away from the functioning of the board for an indefinite period, which can last up to a month or two at the most. In any case, his tenure is getting over in September.
This means Dalmiya will perform the duties of president without being called one. He will not even be called the interim president, as the BCCI rule book doesn’t approve of such a designation. With so much muck of fixing and betting flying around the BCCI, Dalmiya will be left cleaning up the mess.
As soon as the board-appointed commission completes its inquiry into allegations against Srinivasan’s son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan, Dalmiya’s tenure will end.
Going strictly by the rule book, Srinivasan will still enjoy all the powers of a president. He can also represent India at ICC meets. And technically, he can also appoint a secretary and a treasurer.
Srinivasan should be happy with the developments because he did not have to resign despite being under tremendous pressure. He also knows where he stands in board politics. Except for the West Zone, he doesn’t have many to fear within. “A big win for Srinivasan. For him the challenge was to withstand this pressure and he has done it,” was how a senior office-bearer put it.
“After discussions, I announced I will not discharge my duty till the probe is completed. Meanwhile, because the board has to function, it has asked Mr Dalmiya to take care of the things. The meeting was smooth. There was no acrimony,” he reiterated later.