CHENNAI: With less than a month remaining to comply fully with the Supreme Court’s reform orders or get stripped of voting rights, the BCCI units are still a divided lot. Of the 34 in consideration, 10 are still to submit amended constitutions. Ten more have to get them registered. As the deadline for getting this done and holding elections by September 14 comes closer, only 14 are eligible to vote as of now.
That several high-profile state associations are among the ones non-compliant was reported by this newspaper on August 7. According to a list put up on the BCCI website on Wednesday, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Bengal are among those yet to submit amended constitutions. Jharkhand and Haryana, where the acting BCCI secretary and treasurer are from, are also in this group. They have about four weeks to get their constitutions approved by the Committee of Administrators (CoA) and hold elections in order to be eligible to vote in the BCCI elections scheduled for October 22.
The CoA, which has not pulled up any association for not finalising their electoral rolls by August 14, remains firm on the September deadline. “It has already been announced that those unable to fulfil the criteria by September 14 will not be allowed to vote. Some of them came up with questions regarding electoral college, which have been addressed. We are hopeful that all of them will do what is required. Else, they will lose certain privileges BCCI members enjoy,” said an official.
The Tamil Nadu Cricket Association is still to appoint an electoral officer. Until one is appointed, it can’t lay down the electoral protocol. “We have been busy conducting the Tamil Nadu Premier League. Once that’s over, our executive committee will decide how to go about it,” said an official, without elaborating how the association plans to expedite the process.
The Karnataka State Cricket Association says it has submitted names for the electoral officer and is awaiting confirmation. “We have sought a few other clarifications as well. The CoA is still to get back. We know that the deadline is approaching and are confident of getting things done,” said its secretary Sudhakar Rao.
The Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) is confident it will get things in order. “Our revised constitution was ready sometime back. The only thing we had to add was voting rights for former internationals. We have incorporated it and in a day or two, the amended constitution will be sent to the CoA,” said secretary Avishek Dalmiya.
Some of the units have raised questions about the composition of the electoral college as well. After a meeting on Tuesday, the CoA has issued a directive that says clubs which play a part in promoting the game and nurture it at the grassroots should be given membership by the states. It’s not clear whether this has to be done before September 14. If the CoA insists on that date, it may lead to more questions.