CHENNAI : Deadline to hold elections in state associations will expire on October 4 with the two units — Mumbai and Rajasthan — scheduled to conduct polls on the last day. Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra conducted theirs on Wednesday. Haryana is also expected to complete the process by the last day.After elections, the onus will be on the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators (CoA) and electoral officer to take a final call on these state associations’ participation in the BCCI elections scheduled for October 23. The CoA has clarified that the call to rule an association eligible or ineligible to vote and contest in the elections lies with the electoral officer.
“As mandated by the Supreme Court, the CoA will decide whether a state unit is fully compliant or not. Qualification to cast vote and field candidates in the BCCI elections will be decided by the electoral officer,” CoA chief Vinod Rai told this newspaper. Speaking on associations who have already conducted elections, Rai said, “I am not aware of the exact figure and the final tally will only be known on October 4.”
The final list of those fully compliant and eligible to vote and contest in the BCCI elections, however, will not be out on Friday. Electoral officer N Gopalaswami will prepare a draft list on Friday and complete other formalities before drawing the final list.
“The election results are being sent simultaneously to the CoA and me by the state associations. I’ll go through them only on October 4. A draft list will be prepared on the basis of it on Friday. The final list of those qualified for participation in the BCCI elections will be released after going through objections and CoA’s suggestions,” Gopalaswami said.
Publication of the final list or the electoral roll of representatives of eligible members qualified to participate in the BCCI elections by the electoral officer might open a can of worms. With compliance being a much-debated issue so far, a few state units might find themselves in trouble. The disqualification, in turn, will start a fresh battle between these units and the CoA.