DHARAMSALA:The BCCI president Anuag Thakur hinted on Sunday that they would implement some of the recommendations of the Lodha commission, although he made no mention of one vote per state, age-tenure caps and cooling-off period — points board members have strong reservations against.
With the Supreme Court expected to decide on future course of action on Monday, this becomes significant, as there are talks that the apex court might initiate contempt proceedings against the BCCI for not complying with its July 18 order.
The BCCI, which held a meeting in New Delhi on Saturday, had indicated there is no change in their stand with regards to the contentious recommendations and they cannot force the state bodies to fall in line to implement them in full. However, with the Lodha panel pushing to replace the current office-bearers for not co-operating, the BCCI seems to be open to discuss concerns with the court. “The BCCI needs some time to implement some of the recommendations, as the constitution of state associations varies from that of the BCCI. We need all members on the same page to accept the reforms. For that, we need some more time, may be a month or longer,” Thakur said.
However, it is unclear whether the president will mention this in the court, as he also due to file an affidavit before the bench headed by Chief Justice of India TS Thakur. In the last two meetings, the state units have more or less sided with the BCCI. In the previous hearing, the court asked why can’t the BCCI force members to fall in line.
It could turn out to be another day of reckoning for the BCCI as it is unclear at the moment whether the apex court would give them time, considering that there has been no change in the board's stand when it comes to the crucial recommendations. In case the court isn’t satisfied, the Lodha panel might once again push for a new set of office-bearers to oversee the board implement the recommendations. Names of former cricketers Mohinder Amarnath and Anshuman Gaekwad are doing the rounds in case the court takes the drastic step of suspending the president and the secretary.