CHENNAI: There is still no amicable end in sight in the BCCI reforms case. On Monday, the Committee of Administrators (CoA) released a status report which has been submitted to the Supreme Court. It lists seven state associations as ‘non-compliant’ with the court order on updating their constitution in accordance with the previous order. Ten more are categorised as ‘partially compliant’. Out of 34, the remaining 17 are listed as ‘substantially compliant’.
There are big names among the state associations found non-compliant and partially compliant. The first list includes Karnataka, Gujarat, Haryana and Himachal. The second has Tamil Nadu, Bengal, Vidarbha and Jharkhand among others. Some of these units are heavyweights. While Karnataka and Tamil Nadu have traditionally been big players, Bengal is headed by Sourav Ganguly. BJP president Amit Shah is the president of Gujarat.
The CoA has urged the court that voting rights of the non-compliant and partially compliant units be suspended if they fail to submit an affidavit within a week stating that they are fully compliant. It has also said that even those in the substantially compliant category should “further amend their constitutions” to carry out corrections that have already been communicated to them. If they fail to do this, their voting rights too should be revoked.
Some of these associations are seeking fresh guidance. “We have sent a letter to the BCCI and we are waiting for their response. Seven-eight associations have done the same and we are one of them. In the letter, we have asked what action the BCCI wants us to take. We want to know that,” said R Sudhakar Rao, secretary of the Karnataka State Cricket Association. The CoA’s report says the KSCA has not submitted the compliance certificate. It adds that there are “several material deviations” in matters related to composition of apex council.
Listed among the non-compliant, Meghalaya Cricket Association is planning to write to the CoA. “We have submitted everything. It’s possible there has been a misunderstanding. The CoA hasn’t told us anything about it. But now that they have put this up, we will mail them the documents once again,” said association secretary Naba Bhattacharya.
While several associations have been found wanting on rules regarding the formation of the apex council, appointment of selectors and provisions of disqualification, the CoA maintains that it has been flexible in its evaluation. “Owing to the difference in activities and functions of the state associations and BCCI, the respective constitutions of the state associations cannot be identical to that of the BCCI,” reads the CoA’s report.
However, some of the state units believe the CoA has insisted that their constitutions be as close to the BCCI constitution as possible. “Different units have different electorates and constituents. So what we submit can never be the same. We have given what is viable for us to run our association. If the court has a problem with it, we shall hear it from them,” said Tamil Nadu Cricket Association joint-secretary RI Palani.
Where they stand
Non-compliant: Karnataka, Haryana, Himachal, Gujarat, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Arunachal.
Partially compliant: Tamil Nadu, Bengal, Vidarbha, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Goa, Chhattisgarh, Manipur.
Substantially compliant: Andhra, Assam, Baroda, Mizoram, Puducherry, Delhi, Hyderabad, J&K, Kerala, Mumbai, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Saurashtra, Sikkim, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh.
atreyo@newindianexpress.com