BCCI on tenterhooks as Lodha panel to submit report

Reports suggest that panel may recommend that politicians should not be part of the board which is run as a society registered under the Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act.

Published : Jan 03, 2016 17:02 IST , Chennai

The three-member committee comprises Justice (Retd) RM Lodha (above), Justice (Retd) Ashok Bhan and Justice (Retd) RV Raveendran.
The three-member committee comprises Justice (Retd) RM Lodha (above), Justice (Retd) Ashok Bhan and Justice (Retd) RV Raveendran.
lightbox-info

The three-member committee comprises Justice (Retd) RM Lodha (above), Justice (Retd) Ashok Bhan and Justice (Retd) RV Raveendran.

The Indian cricket board will be anxiously waiting for Monday afternoon as the Supreme Court appointed Justice Lodha Committee submits its report, recommending a host of reforms as BCCI looks to rebuild its tattered image after a spate of controversies.

BCCI will be keenly watching the proceedings as to whether the Apex Court makes the recommendations binding or not of the three-member committee, comprising Justice (Retd) RM Lodha, Justice (Retd) Ashok Bhan and Justice (Retd) RV Raveendran.

Reports suggest that panel may recommend that politicians should not be part of the board which is run as a society registered under the Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act.

The executive functionaries are all honorary office-bearers with most of the top state cricket associations

being run by either a politician, or a bureaucrat or a heavyweight industrialist.

Barring former India captain Sourav Ganguly, who is the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) president and Dilip Vengsarkar, vice-president of Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA), none of the top cricketers are running the show in state units.

The second contentious issue that probably will be dealt with in the report is the 'Conflict of Interest'.

The committee may also suggest making IPL a separate private limited company under section-8 which has to reinvest all its profits.

Among the major points on governance structure, it needs to be seen if the all-powerful working committee may be done away with suggestions about having a paid Board of Directors.

The most contentious issue would be the committee's recommendations on politicians, who occupy top positions in the Board.

Already resentful of any such move, a lot of members in the BCCI have already started saying it is tough to ensure that only ex-players can prove to be good administrators.

They feel French football legend and now tainted former UEFA boss Michel Platini is an example of how things may go haywire even if a top player comes in administration.

If there are sweeping changes suggested which are legally binding, then there could be an administrative shake up just before the marquee ICC World T20.

“Is there a guarantee that former players would do a better job than politicians turned sports administrators? If that is so why did Michel Platini get banned for eight years on charges of financial impropriety,” a senior politician and prominent BCCI official questioned.

“One of the finest and prudent presidents of BCCI was Late NKP Salve. Similarly late Jagmohan Dalmiya was a businessman and IS Bindra, a bureaucrat. Didn't they make BCCI a financially stable organisation,” he added.

For top BCCI officials, their argument is “We are elected members of state associations. We have come through Democratic election process. We believe a person can be wrong but not the profession.”

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment