As the BCCI’s working committee prepares to meet after five months, they have key issues to address
Amol Karhadkar25-Sep-2014The working committee of the BCCI will meet after more than five months in Chennai on Friday and it is expected to make decisions relating to its administrative future and the national team. While N Srinivasan, the sidelined BCCI president, will not attend the meeting following a court directive, his influence could be visible in most of the major decisions that will be taken in the meeting.The decisions pertain to:The future of the Indian team’s support staff
The Indian team’s support staff, leading up to the World Cup, is likely to be finalised at this meeting. Mid-way through the England tour, Ravi Shastri was roped in as team director and three Indian coaches – Sanjay Bangar (assistant coach), B Arun (assistant coach) and R Sridhar (fielding coach) – were added to the support staff. Head coach Duncan Fletcher remained in charge of the team but bowling coach Joe Dawes and fielding coach Trevor Penney were sent “on vacation”.The central decision here is whether Shastri will remain in charge of the team as the roles of the other support-staff members are now as good as established. It is believed that Shastri is wary of continuing in the role he assumed for the limited-overs series in England due to his media commitments to multiple broadcasters and publications for India’s tour to Australia and the World Cup. If he accepts the Indian team position, he will not be able to carry out any of these commitments.It is understood that the BCCI hierarchy, through the board secretary Sanjay Patel, has told Shastri that he will be compensated adequately for his services and he can continue working as a media professional during the home series against West Indies. However, the BCCI is keen to have Shastri in the dressing room during the tour to Australia and the World Cup.ESPNcricinfo understands that Shastri has told the BCCI he will take a call after discussing the issue in detail with the media organisations he has agreed to work for. Shastri is expected to reply before Friday’s working committee and the Indian team’s support staff for the World Cup could accordingly be finalised.There is still uncertainty over whether Ravi Shastri will commit to a stint as India’s team director•Getty Images
Patel has confirmed that Dawes and Penney have been asked if they are “willing to work at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore” until their contract expires at the end of the next year’s World Cup. Their reply will be discussed by the working committee, and a decision could be taken on whether to end their association with the BCCI prematurely.The three additions to the support staff – Bangar, Arun and Sridhar – have been assured that their services will be required at least until the World Cup. Fletcher has also been given the same assurance. The India coach has faced flak following the team’s dismal performance, especially in Tests, since he took over in June 2011. Despite the team’s poor run, Fletcher’s technical expertise and the World Cup’s proximity could keep him in charge until the marquee event.BCCI Annual General Meeting
As per its regulations, the BCCI has to convene its Annual General Meeting (AGM) every year before September 30 with a 21-day notice period. Since N Srinivasan, the elected BCCI president, was instructed to stand down by India’s Supreme Court in April this year until investigations into the 2013 IPL corruption scandal were completed, the BCCI has not convened the AGM.The election of office-bearers for the next three years and the finalisation of committees, including the selection panel, is held during the AGM and it is believed that Srinivasan’s intention of continuing as BCCI president for one more term is one of the reasons for postponing the meeting. He even staged a reported show of strength when a majority of BCCI members attended an informal gathering in Chennai on September 7.An official reason being offered for the deferment of the AGM, though not on record, is the confusion over whether court-appointed interim president Shivlal Yadav can sign the balance sheet, the annual budget and the annual report as the board president. Yadav, who is an elected vice-president, has been advised by experts to not sign the official documents in the presence of an elected president who has been restrained from discharging his statutory functions by a court. It is being argued that in the absence of a signed annual report by the president, the AGM cannot be held.Interestingly, the BCCI rulebook does not specify whether the financial documents have to be signed by an elected president. Since there is no provision of an interim president in the BCCI constitution, Yadav is cautious of signing any important document that requires the president’s signature.It is also understood that Yadav is hesitant to convene the AGM due to a constitutional clause that the meeting has to be held before September 30, according to the president’s convenience. According to Clause 16.1 of the BCCI’s Memorandum and Rules and Regulations, “The Annual General Meeting of the Board shall be held every year, not later than 30th September at such place and time as the president may fix.”On Wednesday, Aditya Verma, the petitioner in the IPL corruption case, filed an interlocutory application in the Supreme Court of India, requesting the court to intervene and order the BCCI to convene its AGM immediately. The BCCI is expected to submit a reply to the court before the application’s hearing on October 10.As Srinivasan’s future is expected to be decided in the first week of November based on Justice Mukul Mudgal committee’s report, the BCCI is likely to seek the court’s permission to wait until the committee’s investigative report is submitted to the court. The board could arrive at this line of argument, at the meeting, for not conducting its AGM.Domestic cricket-related matters
Issues around the Rajasthan Cricket Association and the Jammu & Kashmir Cricket Association are expected to be settled.The Rajasthan Cricket Association had been suspended by the BCCI on May 6, following Lalit Modi’s election as president. According to the BCCI regulations, any suspension ceases to exist after six months, so the disciplinary committee may be advised to speed up its proceedings against RCA. A disciplinary committee meeting last week was deferred due to the fresh objections raised by the RCA against the disciplinary committee, and these objections will be tabled before the working committee, after which a reply is likely to be formulated.The working committee will also discuss a proposal to allow a team from four disputed states – Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Uttaranchal and Bihar – to be fielded under the BCCI banner for the domestic season so that most players from Rajasthan do not suffer due to the board’s battle against the RCA. While the working committee may not have any problems in sanctioning such a team for age-group tournaments, the decision over a senior team would have to be taken more carefully. At the moment, the tournament regulations permit only full members of the BCCI to participate in the Ranji Trophy and the 50-overs Vijay Hazare Trophy.Patel had announced last week that Jammu & Kashmir’s home games in the domestic season would be played in Punjab after the state suffered devastating floods earlier this month. Since that announcement, however, JKCA secretary ML Nehru has informed the BCCI that the state association could host “most” of the matches at home. The working committee is, therefore, likely to confirm Punjab as a standby venue for J&K’s games.