Beleaguered BCCI president N Srinivasan may have permitted the board’s joint secretary Anurag Thakur to convene an emergency meeting on Sunday and discuss the current crises, but he has kept many aces under his sleeve to checkmate his opponents in the organisation.
To begin with, the meeting itself seems illegal going by the body’s constitution, as it needs three days’ clear notice for holding any emergency meeting of the working committee. If even a single member raises an objection, the meeting will have to be adjourned. In addition, Srinivasan knows the working committee doesn’t have power to fill vacancies, except to appoint an interim president.
According to his supporters, the cricket boss will first gauge the mood of those who do actually land up in Chennai for the meeting. With IPL governing council chairman Rajiv Shukla resigning on Saturday, the odds are against the BCCI chief. Srinivasan is working according to a well-thought out legal strategy. As per the BCCI constitution, he has the power to fill up any vacancy caused by the exit of any office-bearer or a member of any one of its committees.
In case of a stalemate, he can appoint a new secretary and treasurer who will hold office until the next meeting of the 31-member general body due at the end of September. Secretary Sanjay Jagdale and treasurer Ajay Shirke resigned on Friday.
Srinivasan is exploiting the divisions amongst the various regional satraps. While he has got the full backing of some of powerful members from North and the East, he is basically testing the waters by playing one against another. After getting to hold the meeting on his home turf of Chennai, now he is placing conditions, which he knows will not be accepted by most of the members. It is during his tenure that almost all the 30 State organisations received over Rs 75 crore each.