BCCI AGM postponed indefinitely, says secretary

New Delhi, Sep 13: With the Indian cricket board awaiting the Supreme Court’s verdict on whether former president N. Srinivasan can be allowed to attend its meetings, the board on Sunday postponed indefinitely its Annual General Meeting.

Srinivasan was present at the Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) working committee meeting on August 26 in Kolkata in his capacity as chief of the Tamil du Cricket Association (TNCA).

But it led to a controversy as the Supreme Court said earlier this year that he risked being in contempt of court by attending BCCI meetings.

With several members unhappy at Srinivasan’s presence, BCCI president Jagmohan Dalmiya had to eventually adjourn the working committee meeting indefinitely. The BCCI then filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking clarification whether Srinivasan could attend its AGM — which was origilly scheduled for September 27 in Kolkata — on behalf of the TNCA.

“As per our legal opinion, he (Srinivasan) could not attend the meeting. But he then forced himself to be in the meeting. And we did not want any contempt of court. That is why we have filed the petition on Friday and maybe in a few days’ time we should get the order,” board secretary Anurag Thakur was quoted as saying by Cricinfo on Sunday.

Once the BCCI receives clarification from the apex court, it will require at least 24 days to hold the AGM, including a three-day notice to convene an emergency working committee meeting and then a 21-day notice for the AGM.

If the meeting is postponed again, the BCCI will have to seek permission from the Registrar of societies because the board is registered as a society under the Tamil du Societies Registration Act. “Certain things are not in our hands. This has not happened for the first time. It has happened many times,” Thakur said.

The BCCI secretary also dismissed accusations from Srinivasan’s supporters that senior officials are hindering the board’s functioning with their allegedly high-handed methods. “These are all baseless allegations. If you look at the work in the last few months, it has been very smooth and controversy free. Our only intention is to make cricket controversy free and conflict free,” Thakur insisted. IANS