The announcement of results of the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA) is expected to mark the beginning of a new chapter in the drama that the BCCI politics is.
Following a Supreme Court order, the results of the elections held last year were kept in a sealed envelope and will be opened on Tuesday. What makes the results potentially explosive as far as the BCCI is concerned is the presence of Lalit Modi.
Banned from the BCCI for life last year for financial irregularities in the IPL, Modi pulled a rabbit out of his hat and contested for the post of RCA president, which immediately ruffled feathers in the BCCI. The parent body asked the RCA to dissociate itself from Modi or face action.
Modi took the matter to Supreme Court and won the right to take on Rampal Sharma for the post of president. Even though the result is yet to come out, indications are that he will emerge winner by a handsome margin.
Till Monday, hardly anybody in the BCCI was willing to comment on this. Top officials were unavailable and someone in the know of things said, “We can’t take action against Modi now because the court has cleared him. At the same time, he stays banned in our books.”
This makes the situation peculiar and unprecedented. Here is an individual who stands banned for life as far as the parent body is concerned. And the same parent body says it can’t do anything if the individual becomes the head of one of its affiliated units.
After further persuasion, the person willing to comment said it’s up to the RCA to do something with regard to Modi. “If action has to be initiated, it should be done by the RCA because the BCCI can’t do anything at the moment. It’s up to the RCA because it is the body which is accommodating Modi.” The BCCI, however, can take the matter to court again.
Before the matter went to Supreme Court, the BCCI had threatened action against the RCA. This could range from not allotting international matches to Rajasthan or not letting its team taking part in tournaments like Ranji Trophy. But the court order changes things completely and makes sure that the BCCI has to swallow a few things it doesn’t like.
Talking to TNIE, Modi’s counselor MN Abdi said, “The RCA is governed by the Sports Act of Rajasthan and in this case, it is following the order of the Supreme Court. It is the BCCI which has to respect this and behave like a parent body.”
A contestant for the post of deputy president, the second highest post in the RCA, Abdi added he sees no reason why Modi’s presence should lead to a confrontation between the RCA and the BCCI. “He has been cleared by the court to contest the RCA elections. If he wins, he will become the president. Why should there be a conflict?” said Abdi.
If Modi wins, he will run the association’s affairs from London as because of security threats, he has not been living in India for the past few years. Abdi said he will return to India if the situation improves and should that happen, equations in the BCCI might take another dramatic turn.