BCCI can't make cricket suffer for its recklessness
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is in a defiant mode and now risks further censure from the Supreme Court of India.
For months, the BCCI has dragged its feet on recommendations made by the Justice RM Lodha panel. Finally, a day after the September 30 deadline ended, the BCCI at its meeting in Mumbai decided that it was not going to accept several conditions.
At a time when the Vidarbha and Tripura cricket associations have accepted the Justice Lodha panel suggestions, it makes no logic for the men at the helm in the BCCI to play hard.
Ever since the dirt and sleaze in the Indian Premier League came out in the open a few seasons ago and the Supreme Court stepped in, cricket cried for its credibility to be restored.
Once that was done and two IPL teams Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals were suspended, one thought the BCCI would have learnt its lessons.
That doesn't seem to be the case as even after the Supreme Court subsequently empowered the Justice Lodha panel to prescribe corrections and suggest a new constitution, the BCCI has been wasting time.
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| Justice RM Lodha. (Photo credit: PTI) |
Just to jog the readers' memory, the court had asked state cricket associations and the BCCI for their feedback. The mood within several state associations was one of their power being eroded after being asked to fall in line.
For its part, the BCCI dilly-dallied till the last day and they decided to reject the Justice Lodha panel suggestions.
At a time when the Indian cricket team is doing well and Virat Kohli's side is on the ascendant against New Zealand in the ongoing Test series, it's sad that cricket politics has hit the nadir.
The BCCI was told not to hold elections till the new constitution was adopted. It did the converse, which has not gone down well with the highest court of the land.
As regards the new selection committee, the BCCI had invited applications and two names chosen in it have created problems.
Gagan Khoda and Jatin Paranjpe have not played Test cricket and are ineligible to be in the selection panel, according to the Justice Lodha recommendations.
The path ahead for the BCCI is indeed turbulent. The Supreme Court could well go ahead and take the decision to appoint administrators in the coming week.
Should that happen, cricketing matters in the country will not be run by BCCI officials but people appointed by the court.
Whatever be the state of the BCCI, whether a single administrator runs cricket or a group of administrators, they should ensure cricket does not suffer.
There is a hectic domestic season ahead and Team India also has a packed Test calendar.
Just because the BCCI officials are behaving in a reckless manner does not mean cricket suffers. One would expect the administrators to play a proactive role and even get in touch with the apex body, the International Cricket Council.
As it were, relations between the BCCI and ICC are not cordial. ICC boss Shashank Manohar has obviously understood the message from the Justice Lodha panel well, which is why the Vidarbha Cricket Association has accepted the recommendations in full. Tripura has also done the same.
People who live in the capital are aware how the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) functions today as almost all decisions are taken by retired justice Mukul Mudgal.
Be it hosting an international match at the Kotla or even naming a selection panel to pick the Delhi side, everything is being done under cricket loving Mudgal's eyes.
Had the BCCI maintained a good equation with Shashank Manohar, it could have asked for support from the ICC. Today, the situation is such, the BCCI officials have nowhere to go.
The current set of office bearers in the BCCI know they have lost the fight. Being defiant is not going to enhance their reputation. If there is a cooling off period which needs to be followed, it should have been done gracefully.
By holding elections much against the court's wishes, the BCCI has shown it is not just in a hurry but in a recalcitrant mood.
We have seen in the recent past how several sports bodies in the country were forced to fall in line after clear-cut guidelines were issues. People clung on to power for decades until the riot act was finally read out to them.
The BCCI also needs to know there is no public sympathy for them and by being defiant they are causing immense damage.
Hopefully, Indian cricket will not suffer.
(Courtesy of Mail Today.)