CHETAN CHAUHAN ‘APPOINTED’ NEW WORKING PRESIDENT OF MESSY DDCA

Qaiser Mohammad Ali, Managing Editor, www.JantaKaReporter.com

@AlwaysCricket

 

DDCA vice-president Chetan Chauhan has been “appointed” new working president of the association, the former India Test opener himself confirmed the development. Treasurer Ravinder Manchanda also confirmed Chauhan’s appointment.

Chauhan, who “replaces” president SP Bansal till the next DDCA AGM, has been “appointed” by a specific ‘resolution by circulation’ among the 27 directors of the Delhi and District Cricket Association, after it was set in motion by DDCA general secretary Anil Khanna.

These empty liquor bottles lying in a corner of the Ferozeshah Kotla Stadium, which houses the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) in Delhi, are symbolic of the mess DDCA is in at present. Cricket has taken a backseat while all kinds of corruption is raging unabated.
Photo: Qaiser Mohammad Ali

“I have been given the responsibility to work as working president till such time the AGM takes place. I have been elected by a majority of 27 directors through a resolution by circulation,” Chauhan told jantakareporter.com late on Saturday evening.

A reliable source said that 17 out of the 27 directors approved and signed the resolution seeking to appoint Chauhan as working president. Ten directors have not signed so far, but they would also fall in line sooner than later, said the source. No one has opposed Chauhan so far.

However, to make the appointment of Chauhan effective, the DDCA executive will now have to ratify the resolution by circulation by a majority in meeting where they will have to be physically present. No date has been fixed for an executive meeting, but Chauhan might take charge either on Sunday or Monday.

While appointing Chauhan, the resolution “withdrew” the powers of Bansal, who has been charged with “temporary embezzlement”, which involves twice accepting reimbursement from both the BCCI and the DDCA for the same air tickets for attending a BCCI meeting as a DDCA representative.

While circulating the resolution, moved as per Companies Act 2013 and Rules 2014, Anil Khanna says in the paper that the present resolution, seeking transferring powers of the president from Bansal to Chauhan, would supersede all previous relevant resolutions.

The five-page resolution, in fact, contained two resolutions. The first one about Chauhan/Bansal read: “Resolved, that with reference to findings against Mr SP Bansal of the fact finding report of DDCA which can be termed as temporary embezzlement, twice taking the money knowingly for air-ticket to attend BCCI meeting from BCCI and DDCA for same ticket which can be termed as temporary embezzlement, not handing over of minutes books to the secretary general along with all statutory record in his custody such as CLB [Company Law Board]/ROC [Registrar of Companies] record etc. and lack of confidence of majority of the executive committee of DDCA in the president, Mr SP Bansal, and in interest of transparency and good governance in DDCA, the powers of Mr SP Bansal are withdrawn for the post of President DDCA and in his place Mr Chetan Chauhan is appointed as Working President with all powers of the President till such time all the issues of reported financial irregularities against Mr SP Bansal are resolved.”

The source said Khanna acted as per directions from “someone powerful” in the BJP-led central government.

“In DDCA, things either don’t move at all or move at a snail’s pace. But this resolution by circulation was moved just two days ago and by Saturday at least 17 directors had signed. Obviously, it is amply clear that they all signed on directions from ‘someone powerful’ in the government,” the source told jantakareporter.com

“This rapid development has taken place specifically in view of the India-South Africa Test match that is to be hosted by the DDCA from 3 December at the Ferozeshah Kotla. But the DDCA has no money to organise the match,” he said. “And the BCCI would not give the DDCA money because it has not submitted its balance-sheets for 2013-14 and 2014-15, without which the association can’t claim its due share from the Board.”

The source also informed that Chauhan’s name came up after CK Khanna, also a DDCA vice-president, declined the offer to be become working president.

Manchanda confirmed that Chauhan has been appointed working president. He hoped that the Test match would be played at the Kotla as per the schedule.

“Chauhan met Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia yesterday and we would be meeting chief minister Arvind Kejriwal in a few days to seek their blessings in organising the Test match,” Manchanda told jantakareporter.com.

Manchanda was referring to the Rs 25 crore, comprising entertainment tax and penalty for not paying the tax over the years, that the Delhi government wants the DDCA to pay before giving permission to host the Test match.

“The BCCI would give us the money to organise the Test once we send the 2013-14 balance sheet to the Board. This balance sheet is ready,” Manchanda said.

One more resolution was circulated among the DDCA directors on Saturday. This one pertained to the DDCA’s sports working committee (SWC). Through this resolution the wings of the SWC have been clipped, said the source.

“The sports working committee was always supposed to take instructions from the executive committee, but lately it had exceeded its brief, thanks to patronage it received from certain DDCA bigwigs. But now, through Saturday’s resolution, its powers have been defined clearly, and it will have get everything approved by the executive committee,” said the source.

(This piece first appeared on www.JantaKaReporter.com on November 8)

‘ASKED TO GO’, IPL COO SUNDAR RAMAN RESIGNS
Qaiser Mohammad Ali, Managing Editor, www.JantaKaReporter.com
Twitter: @AlwaysCricket

Controversial IPL chief operating office Sundar Raman, who was probed by a Supreme Court-appointed committee for his role in 2013 IPL betting-fixing scandal, has resigned, after being asked to do so by the BCCI president Shashank Manohar.

Raman, who was involved in the IPL since its first edition in 2008 and his tenure lasted around seven years, submitted his resignation to Manohar in his home city Nagpur on Monday, IPL governing council chairman Rajeev Shukla told jantakareporter.com on Tuesday.

A BCCI source said that three persons have already been shortlisted to replace Raman and one of them could be picked as early as Monday’s annual general meeting in Mumbai.

“Yes, Raman has resigned and he gave his resignation to Mr Manohar in Nagpur yesterday,” Shukla told jantakareporter.com

“We will discuss the issue at Monday’s BCCI AGM, though it is not on the agenda,” he said.

Later, in the afternoon, the Board issued a statement, saying, "The BCCI on Tuesday accepted Mr. Sundar Raman’s resignation from the post of Chief Operating Officer of the Indian Premier League (IPL)."

Raman, who was very close to former BCCI president N. Srinivasan, was hired by former IPL chairman Lalit Modi. After Modi was sacked by Manohar-Srinivasan in April 2010, for being allegedly involved in financial irregularities, Raman is said to have become close to Srinivasan. He enjoyed Srinivasan’s trust and, many people say, that was the reason he weathered all the storms over the years, despite being abrasive.

Two independent BCCI sources confirmed that Manohar, who took over the BCCI reins on October 4 after the death of Jagmohan Dalmiya, had told Raman that he had to go as part of his cleansing drive.

“A day before taking over, Manohar had met Justice Lodha in Delhi and got an inkling what all the former Chief Justice of India wants him to do as Board president,” the source told jantakareporter, referring to the Supreme Court-appointed Lodha Committee.

“The next day Manohar, after taking the charge at the SGM, he announced a series of steps that he intended to take. Although he did not publicly announce that he would ask Raman to go, he privately told him that his position was untenable in the BCCI,” he said.

“Raman then sought some time so that he could look for another assignment, but he was not given that. He was told that he should resign before the BCCI AGM. Had he not resigned, he could well have been sacked at the AGM. His resignation was expected; there is nothing surprising in it. He had no option but to resign.”

Several BCCI officials feel Raman’s decision has pre-emptive the Lodha Committee report, which will be on reforms in the BCCI and which is to submit to the Supreme Court next month.

But BCCI officials feel that a charge sheet, if required, could still be filed against Raman, if the Lodha Committee so recommends in its report.

“If Lodha Committee recommends punishment, it won’t make any difference because he has now resigned. Like in an office if someone comes to know that he would be sacked and he reigns, what happens? Nothing. Isn’t it?” he said. “After all, he [Raman] hasn’t murdered anyone. But, suppose, if the Lodha Committee tells the Board to file a charge sheet against him and take action, then the Board would have to do it.”

Another source said, “Suppose the Lodha Committee recommends his suspension from BCCI or IPL and assuming that would indeed be the case, Raman has now pre-empted that by resigning. He cannot be given a jail term as he is not a public servant.”

The source also disclosed that the search for Raman’s replacement had begun soon after Manohar had taken the charge.

“Three people have been shortlisted and one of them will be hired, perhaps at Monday’s AGM itself. The process of shortlisting had started after Manohar took over the reins,” he informed.

The charge against Raman vis-à-vis IPL betting-fixing was that he failed to inform the BCCI about some contentious calls he had received during the 2013 IPL.

In its first report, submitted in February last year, the Supreme Court-appointed Mudgal Committee had said, “The Committee in relation to IPL franchisees in general and Mr. [Gurunath] Meiyappan in particular questioned Mr. Sundar Raman as to who an owner of a team is, to which he replied that the ownership structures of teams are in general ambiguous. Mr. Raman further stated that the term ‘owner’ for the purpose of accreditation is loosely used and has no implication, while identifying an owner under the franchise agreement. He further stated that the status of an ultimate owner is not clear, but may be read as per the Franchise Agreement. Mr. Raman also admitted that the IPL Governing Council had not made any effort to determine who the ultimate owners of the franchisees were.”

In his second report, Mudgal wrote of Raman, “He knew a contact of a bookie and had contacted him eight times in one season. He admitted knowing the contact of the bookies but however claimed to be unaware of his connection with betting activities. He also accepted that he had received information about Meiyappan and [Rajasthan Royals co-owner Raj] Kundra taking part in betting activities but was informed by ICC-ACSU chief that this was not actionable information.”

While appointing the Lodha Committee, the Supreme Court had in its order said, “The three-member Committee constituted in terms of Para (II) above, shall also examine the role of Mr. Sundar Raman with or without further investigation, into his activities, and if found guilty, impose a suitable punishment upon him on behalf of BCCI.”

The Lodha Committee report is to submit its report next month.

(Exclusive): Ex-ICC chief Mani misses Dalmiya’s ‘decisive leadership’

Qaiser Mohammad Ali, Managing Editor, www.jantakareporter.com
@AlwaysCricket

Former International Cricket Council president Ehsan Mani has said that the BCCI had delayed it far too long in seeking the government’s permission for the national team to play Pakistan in a bilateral series scheduled for December in the United Arab Emirates.

While describing cricket as a “wonderful tool” to connect people of the two countries, Mani said the BCCI “severely missed” the “decisive leadership” of Jagmohan Dalmiya, his late friend who shared his belief that the game could help bridge all gaps between India and Pakistan.

The immensely successful India’s tour of Pakistan in 2004 for the Friendship Series is the brightest example.

Giving another example, 70-year-old Mani said that the Edhi Foundation taking care of Geeta, an Indian girl who strayed into Pakistan inadvertently, for 13 long years illustrates that human beings could co-exist without political boundaries.

“It is very disappointing that BCCI, led by Mr [Shashank] Manohar, has left it to the 11th hour to approach the government,” the London-based Mani told jantakareporter.com

To be fair to Manohar, he reluctantly took over the BCCI reins only on October 4, following the death of Dalmiya.

Manohar then decided to resume talks with the Pakistan Cricket Board. He invited his Pakistani counterpart Shaharyar Khan and two other top officials for discussions on the possible resumption of the India-Pakistan series. But due to a protest by Shiv Sena workers in Mumbai, the talks probably didn’t take place in that city.

Now, it seems the issue is back to square one, and the ball in the Indian government’s court.

“It’s a times like this that the decisive leadership of Dalmiya is severely missed. He never hesitated in playing against Pakistan, unless the [Indian] government specifically intervened,” Mani said, about the former BCCI president who passed away recently.

“Dalmiya genuinely believed that cricket was a tool in improving relations between Pakistan and India,” Mani, who forged a formidable partnership with Dalmiya, emphasised.

To buttress his point of the significance of people-to-people contact between India and Pakistan, Mani pointed out the case of Geeta, the deaf and dumb girl, who inadvertently slipped into Pakistan in 2003.

The world famous Edhi Foundation took her under its wings and gave her the name, Geeta. This week, the foundation formally handed over Geeta to the Indian government in New Delhi.

“Edhi’s gesture is not in handing over Geeta, but in looking after her for all these years. In his [Edhi’s] eyes, and that of millions of Pakistanis, Geeta was a fellow human being who required love and care and Edhi provided it unconditionally,” underlined Mani.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi appreciated the Edhi Foundation’s work and announced a donation of Rs 1 crore for the body. However, the foundation politely declined the offer, pointing to its established rules of not accepting donations from governments.

“I am proud that Edhi declined the gesture of Prime Minister Modi of Rs.10 million. Some things cannot be measured in terms of money, just as the goodwill created between the people of India and Pakistan. By playing cricket against each other, they do more than any politician can ever do,” averred Mani.

“So, I strongly believe that the series should take place as it is wonderful tool to create people to people contact, and which is the need of the hour,” he stressed.

A chartered accountant by profession, Mani was ICC president from 2003 to 2006. During his period he forged a strong bond with the BCCI, particularly with Dalmiya, also a former ICC president.

A chartered accountant by profession, Mani first represented PCB in the ICC in 1989 and rose to become one of its directors when he took the chair of the ICC Finance and Marketing Committee in 1996. He chaired the committee until July 2002, when he became the ICC vice-president. He also held several other posts in the organisation.

Mani, who himself played club-level cricket for many years in Rawalpindi, fondly remembers watching the India-Pakistan Test series in 1954-55, when India toured Pakistan.

In an earlier interview with this writer, Mani had said that one of his “most abiding memories” was India’s legendary leg-spinner Subhash Gupte having Pakistan’s Maqsood Ahmed stumped by wicket-keeper Naren Tamhane for 99 in the Lahore Test.

“I also remember admiring Dattu Phadkar’s bowling. He was a great bowler, and Vinoo Mankad as a player — and Polly Umrigar and G.S. Ramchand — tremendous Indian team, actually,” Mani had said.

3 MEMBERS OF DELHI JUNIOR SELECTION COMMITTEE RESIGN, DDCA SLIPS DEEPER INTO COMA

Qaiser Mohammad Ali, Managing Editor, www.JantaKaReporter.com
My twitter handle: @AlwaysCricket

Three members of the four-member Delhi junior selection committee resigned on October 20, plunging the Delhi and District Cricket Association in a deeper morass. This committee was mandated by the DDCA executive committee to pick under-14, under-16 and under-19 teams for the 2015-16 cricket season.

Fed up with people putting constant pressure to pick their favourite players, three members of the junior selection committee of the DDCA resigned on October 20 as a mark of protest. They tendered a joint letter. Photo: Qaiser Mohammad Ali

Nikhil Chopra, chairman of the selection committee and a former India Test player, former first-class cricketer Sunil Valson, and selection committee convenor Salil Seth resigned en-masse from the committee which was duly appointed on September 17, after the three BJP government nominees floated the resolution.

The three submitted their joint resignation letter to DDCA general secretary Anil Khanna on Tuesday and sent copies to DDCA president and vice-presidents.

The third selector, Suresh Luthra, did not resign, though he was taken into confidence by Chopra, Valson and Seth, said DDCA sources.

In their resignation letter, the three persons say they were “shocked” at being sidelined by a section of the DDCA administrators who last week “illegally” announced a “parallel” selection committee without “intimating” them.

Last week, DDCA vice-presidents Chetan Chauhan and CK Khanna, who is also a BCCI vice-president, and sports working committee convenor Vinod Tihara, put up a notice on the noticeboard at the Ferozeshah Kotla, announcing new selection panels for under-14 and under-16.

“Our effort was to ensure that the players get an opportunity to showcase their talent. In fact, we selected the under-19 for the Vinoo Mankad Trophy and full marks to the players that they performed exceptionally well by topping the [north] zone in rather convincing manner,” reads the resignation letter.

“Now, in the meanwhile, a new set of selectors for under-14 and under-16 have [been] announced by the DDCA without any intimation to us, which is rather shocking and more importantly in violation of the earlier resolution passed by the same executive committee,” says the letter.

“This leaves us with no choice, but to resign from our appointment as selectors/convenor for u-14, u-16 and u-19 age groups. This letter may therefore be treated as our resignations.”

Anil Khanna said he has received the email and that he would talk to the selectors and the convenor on Wednesday.

“I have received their email. But I have not accepted their resignation so far. I will talk to them tomorrow,” Khanna told jantakareporter.com.

When pointed out that “parallel” selection committees for under-14 and under-16 have been constituted while the original one also existed, Khanna feigned ignorance.

He said, “I am not aware of that as I have not been going to the club [DDCA] for 10-12 days because I have fractured my leg and then my daughter fell sick. But it will be better if you speak to CK Khanna.”

The real reason, say DDCA sources, for forming parallel panels was that the Nikhil Chopra-led panel was doing its job “honestly”.

“These selectors were going about their task in a transparent manner, and this was annoying certain people in the DDCA who wanted to their own ‘boys’ in the junior teams. When all their efforts to manipulate selection went in vain, some of them joined hands and announced parallel panels last week,” a source told jantakareporter.com

“Imagine, CK Khanna, who is a BCCI vice-president, has become convenor of the under-14 panel. It’s hugely disgraceful he is not even living up to the stature of a BCCI vice-president,” he said. “The situation in DDCA has become really bad now.”

FINANCIALLY-CRIPPLED DDCA GETS Rs. 24 CRORE TAX NOTICE FROM DELHI TAX DEPT

By Qaiser Mohammad Ali, Managing Editor, www.JantaKaReporter.com

Twitter: @AlwaysCricket

The Delhi Excise, Entertainment and Luxury Tax Department has slapped a tax of Rs 24.45 crore and additional penalty on a financially crippled Delhi and District Cricket Association, and has asked it to pay it within 15 days.

Interestingly, the tax notice has come Financially-crippled DDCA gets Rs 24 crore tax notice a little over a month before the DDCA is scheduled to host a five-day Test match against South Africa at the Ferozeshah Kotla, starting on 3 December.

Ferozeshah Kotla Stadium that houses the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA), which is perennially surrounded by controversies.It is currently struggling with finances and it remains to be seen how it hosts the fourth India-South Africa Test match, starting on December 3. Photo: Qaiser Mohammad Ali

This outstanding tax amount is towards the non-payment of entertainment tax, interest and penalty from 2003 to 2005. A 10-page notice, issued on 21 October, from the tax department says that if the DDCA failed to pay the arrears, “necessary action” would be initiated under the provisions of the Delhi Entertainments and Betting Tax Act 1966 for recovery of Rs 24,45,96,000 (Click to enlarge graphic below).

A copy of the letter, written PK Goel, Entertainment Tax officer, Delhi Government, is with jantakareporter.com.

According to the assessment by the tax department, the DDCA had earned a total of Rs 34.96 crore from 45 companies to which the corporate box seats at the Kotla stadium were sold between 2003 and 2005.

On this amount, tax at a rate of 15 per cent was levied, totalling Rs 5.25 crore. But since the DDCA didn’t pay the tax, a penalty has been imposed.

DDCA treasurer Ravinder Manchanda candidly admitted that paucity of finances was a severe problem. “We don’t have enough money. How will we pay this amount [Rs 24 crore]?” Manchanda told jantakareporter.com

Manchanda, however, said that the DDCA would contest the tax department demand and seek a stay so that it could host the Test match.

“We have sent our reply to the tax department. Their tax calculation is not proper. But we have made the payment for the current year,” he said. “This tax demand is debatable/contestable. Either we will appeal the tax department or move the Delhi High Court. We will be seeking a stay from the court. We will take this step soon as we have to host a Test match. If the match is shifted from Delhi it would be embarrassing for the DDCA.”

Jantakareporter.com learns that the BCCI had recently floated a proposal to constitute a committee, like the one that is administering the game in Rajasthan, to take over the DDCA reins as infighting between Delhi cricket administrators intensified.

Sources say although the idea hasn’t been implemented so far, it hasn’t been dumped either, especially as the BCCI doesn’t want any last minute embarrassment while hosting the Test match against South Africa.

DDCA’s problems are manifold. Apart from the long-standing arrears, it is financial crippled as the BCCI has not paid its [DDCA’s] share due to the association as it has not submitted its balance sheets for years 2013-14 and 2014-15 due to internal squabbling. The balance sheets for both financial years are not even ready.

Now, after Shashank Manohar taking over the BCCI’s reins and with the Supreme Court-appointed Lodha Committee expected to give a report on Board’s administrative reforms in December, things could become all the more tough for the enfant terrible DDCA.

Former India cricket captain Bishan Singh Bedi, president of the NCT Cricket Association, said that CBI has registered a case against the DDCA and some of its office-bearers for various transgressions.

“We demand that the BCCI should immediately appoint a committee to oversee the affairs of the DDCA so that cricket and cricketers do not suffer,” said Bedi in a statement.

Bedi said the CBI registered the case and their office bearers based on a complaint lodged by former Test cricketer Kirti Azad.

“The charges include loot in the construction of Kotla stadium; unauthorised construction; defalcation of DDCA funds; presenting fake bills; making fake, inflated and unnecessary payments to 15 chartered accountants and several lawyers to the tune of Rs 4 crores/year; and sham accounts prepared by an indicted chartered accountant etc.,” Bedi said in a statement.

Speaking to jantakareporter .com, Bedi said that the DDCA would have to pay the tax dues even if it didn’t have money. “We know the DDCA doesn’t have money. But the tax department knows how to extract its dues,” he said.

When pointed out that the DDCA has to host a Test match soon, Bedi said, “We also know that. But the BCCI will have to activate [itself] fast if the match has to be shifted from Delhi.”

Bedi said Kirti Azad needs to be backed as it was on his complaint that the CBI had registered a case against the DDCA.

“Look at the 200 letters and scores of messages that we sent to Arun Jaitley [DDCA president from 1999 to 2013],” Bedi said in his statement. “He never acted on any of them. In fact, he did everything to subvert the rule of law to save the office bearers who are now getting exposed by the investigation agencies.”

EXCLUSIVE: THE VIRENDER SEHWAG I HAVE KNOWN FOR OVER 20 YEARS

By Qaiser Mohammad Ali in New Delhi

Managing Editor, www.JantaKaReporter.com
Twitter: @AlwaysCricket

After he finished the first day of the Multan Test unbeaten on 228 on 28 March, 2004, Virender Sehwag and I decided that we would have dinner the next day in his hotel room. Of course, neither of us had any inkling that 29 March would be a historic day in the annals of Indian cricket.

The next day Sehwag became the first Indian to hammer a Test triple century, and as per the plan I reached hotel Holiday Inn in the evening. It was a historic day for Sehwag and the Indian team as well. So, I was surprised to find no hustle and bustle in the hotel lobby, on the corridor of the floor on which the Indian team was lodged, and neither in his room. I was expecting celebrations to commemorate the first ever triple century by an Indian batsman.

Sehwag himself was completely normal. The first thing I asked him was about the celebrations. He said the team had told him that a grand celebration would be organised on the team’s return to India (but to the best of my knowledge, no such celebrations ever took place).

‘Viru’ said he had received letters/faxes from BCCI president Jagmohan Dalmiya, team sponsor Sahara India and Coca Cola while Hero Honda owner Pawan Munjal sent him a bouquet and two bottles of champagne through someone, besides receiving many phone calls.

After Sehwag placed room service order -- vegetarian food, comprising arhar dal and vegetable -- the Pakistani masseur that the Indian team had engaged for that tour came to give him a well-deserved massage. The only other person (apart from the person who brought the food) during my two-hour stay in his room was left-arm spinner Murali Karthik, but he stayed for just a few minutes.

The entire idea of recalling the scene at the Indian team’s hotel that evening is to emphasise that Sehwag stayed grounded despite achieving what no other Indian batsman had achieved till then – rather, till today: score a triple century in Test matches. He, in fact, is one of the two batsmen in the 138-year Test history to play three 290-plus knocks, the other being Don Bradman.

At the end of the tour, ‘Viru’ told me, “I went there [to Pakistan] with a blank mind. I only thought of playing well and performing. I was thinking that when I have performed well on the hard and bouncy tracks of Australia, maybe it would be slightly easy in Pakistan.”

Sehwag also did a lot of shopping in Pakistan — bought many DVDs, ladies suits, Peshawari sandals and chappals – as after all he was going to get married soon on returning home.

I have many other good reasons to remember India’s 2004 tour of Pakistan, particularly vis-à-vis Sehwag. He presented me the shirt that he wore while scoring 309 in Multan, after putting his signature on it (photo with this story).

Before the three-match Test series, which India won 2-1, was over, one evening when I was returning from the stadium to my hotel, I received an unexpected call from ‘Viru’, inviting me to dinner with him that evening.

When I reached his room, I got a ‘breaking news’: Sehwag told me he was getting married to Aarti, his long-time acquaintance, on 23 April. He had even got his wedding cards couriered to him in Pakistan from Delhi. It would have been a big scoop for any journalist; a story, accompanied by a photo of the wedding card, would have been a big ‘exclusive’.

But since ‘Viru’ had trusted me – and it was a very personal thing for him — neither did I write that ‘breaking news’ nor told anyone about it till date, except my family on my return to Delhi. This is the first time I am revealing this on public domain.

The reason Sehwag invited me was that he wanted me to help him draw a list of players, with whom he had played with and against, for sending invitation cards. There was a cache of reception invitation cards on his bed that he probably later distributed to his Pakistani friends. He gave me mine then and there, and wrote my name in his own handwriting.

The card clearly mentioned that children would not be allowed at the reception, but he still wrote my five-and-half-year-old son Ammaar’s name on the envelope. Once we finished making the list of invitees came the food, of course, vegetarian.

As I discovered at his wedding reception at hotel ITC Maurya in Delhi, Sehwag’s handwritten invitation card posed a problem for three of us – wife and son – at the entrance of the venue.

There were two printed lists of invitees – one from Sehwag’s side and the other from his wife Aarti’s – with which invitees’ cards were being tallied. I realised I was the odd man out. The people manning the reception hall entrance didn’t find my name in either list, and it took some convincing from me that it was indeed Sehwag’s handwriting before they allowed us in.

Another unforgettable memory of Sehwag is of August 2009, when he sensationally told me that he was fed up with corruption in Delhi cricket and planning to leave for some other state. Late that evening on August 16, a source called me up at my Mail Today office to give the ‘breaking news’. He informed me that Sehwag a couple of other players were seeking NOC.

“It’s a big story,” I uttered instantly. I immediately texted ‘Viru’ and he confirmed what my source had told me, and he was ready to talk about the issue.

While speaking to Sehwag, I realised he was extremely peeved with the state of affairs at the Arun Jaitley-headed DDCA. Mincing no words, he told me that he was fed up with the “rampant corruption” in selection of Delhi teams.

‘Viru’ also told me that if he had deferred taking NOC for a few days it was only because Jaitley wanted him to have a chat with him. After seven days, Sehwag and Nawab Pataudi, who he had taken along to articulate his point of view, met Jaitley he decided to stay back in Delhi after being assured of remedial measures to tackle corruption. However, corruption at the DDCA seems to have only risen since.

DDCA officials hardly treated Sehwag well during their long association. And this became starkly evident also on August 16, 2009, when I contacted a senior DDCA official to get an official quote on ‘Viru’ seeking the NOC to leave Delhi. “No, he hadn’t [contacted me]. But had he come to me I would’ve given him the NOC in a second,” the official told me.

Sehwag has remained grounded till this day, though some people have misunderstood him and, at times, rather uncharitably call him abrasive. But ‘Viru’ is known to speak only in one manner – formally and informally – and it all depends on you to interpret it as ‘arrogance’ or ‘typical Sehwag’.

On his comeback to the Indian team in 2008 – after being dropped for the first time for lack of form the previous year – Sehwag was in great form. In that calendar year, he had amassed 1,462 runs at 56.23 in 27 innings of 14 Tests.

After helping India chase an improbable-looking total against England in the first Test in Chennai in December by scoring a blazing 63-ball 83, he looked relaxed and contented when I visited his Hauz Khas home in Delhi for a detailed interview.

It turned out to be the longest formal interview that I have done with him so far – lasting over an hour, uninterrupted — and during which we had tea twice over.

He was extremely candid on many issues, including his relationship with former coach Greg Chappell; the confidence he got when his first son Aryavir was born, in 2007, a day before his own birthday, when he was dropped from the Indian team; and on what songs/Gurubani he sings while batting with Gautam Gambhir.

After the interview, Sehwag took me to the basement of the building where he had built an ultra-modern gymnasium. He even made me try out a few equipment.

Sehwag has not been kind only to me but also to my son, who would often send him good wishes for matches either in the form of hand-made greeting cards or by recording his voice on tape. ‘Viru’ would either record his reply on tape or write back.

We have had meals/tea in his hotel rooms at various locations, in and outside India. But I never sought any confidential information from Sehwag, nor he did he offer any, ever. Perhaps, it was this solid foundation on which our relationship was built, and perhaps ‘Viru’ quietly acknowledged. The relationship is now 20 years old and going strong.
(This article first appeared on www.JantaKaReporter.com)

BCCI budgets Rs. 330.32 crore to fight IPL fixing-betting case in Supreme Court (Exclusive)

By Qaiser Mohammad Ali (Mail Today) 

New Delhi, December 23, 2014: Jittery BCCI mandarins seem to have anticipated that the ongoing high-profile 2013 IPL betting-fixing case in the Supreme Court would drag on for a long period and that’s probably why it has earmarked a fund just to meet the expenses, including a huge lawyers’ bill.
 
The BCCI, the richest cricket board in the world, has set aside an exigency fund of Rs. 330.32 crore, specifically to meet the expenses of this case. This amount, according to a top BCCI source, is part of Rs. 1,150.67 crore that the BCCI has invested in Fixed Deposits (FDs) in banks.
 
If BCCI officials had indeed anticipated a long drawn battle in the complicated case, in which a lot is at stake for sidelined president N. Srinivasan, his son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan, and IPL franchises — Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals, they were not off target.
 
“That is why the Board has kept aside a specific fund for the ongoing case in the Supreme Court. If all of this Rs. 330.32 crore is not utilised, the leftover amount will be used for some other meaningful purpose,” the source told Mail Today. “So, after Rs. 330.32 crore is taken out of the total of Rs. 1,150.67 crore invested in the FDs, the Board is actually left with only Rs. 785 crore,” he stressed, hinting at a none-too-happy situation so far funds are concerned.
 
The source further disclosed: “The BCCI currently has $18.5million approximately (Rs. 116.90 crore) Exchange Earners' Foreign Currency Account (EEFC) while there is Rs. 134 crore in the various savings accounts.”
 
The Supreme Court case, being fought on a PIL filed by unrecognised Cricket Association of Bihar (CAB), has now gone on for almost one-and- a-half years. However, the arguments by the parties are now over and the two-member bench, comprising Justices T.S. Thakur and Fakkir Mohamed Ibrahim Kalifulla, has reserved the judgement, which is expected to be delivered early next month when the court reopens after the winter vacation.
 
The BCCI/Srinivasan have hired the services of some of the top-of-the-line lawyers like Kapil Sibal and C.A. Sundram, and the Board realised that it would particularly need a large fund to meet their lawyers’ fees and related sundry expenses, like travelling etc. This case and other court battles, besides a spate of tax demands running into hundreds of crores of rupees and arbitration proceedings against several clients, has forced the BCCI on the back foot and juggle its funds.
 
This is corroborated by BCCI’s decision to break many of its Fixed Deposit Receipts (FDRs) prematurely during financial year 2012-13 to meet various pressing fund requirements. It encashed 17 FDRs, ranging between periods of 181 days to one year, which were worth Rs. 130 crore.
 
More recently, the standing committee of finance (2014-15) of the 16th Lok Sabha, in its 31-page report, which mostly deals with the BCCI/IPL’s commercial aspect, came down heavily on tax authorities for being “very lenient” on the Board.
 
In some cases, the probe by the tax authorities, including the Enforcement Directorate, continues. “The committee are, however, not satisfied with the progress of investigations in the matter, as already much time has passed without any outcome by way of penal action in these cases. The committee, therefore, would like the government to conclude the investigations in the matter expeditiously and apprise the committee of the outcome thereof,” wrote M. Veerappa Moily, chairperson of the committee on finance.
 
(This story was first published in Mail Today newspaper on December 23, 2014)

Opposition alleges Srinivasan group delaying convening special general meeting of BCCI

By Qaiser Mohammad Ali in New Delhi

Four days after it was decided by the BCCI’s working committee (on April 20) that a special general meeting would be convened there is no sign of notice convening the same, forcing some members to call it a tactical play to buy time by the N. Srinivasan group.

Interestingly, the BCCI prepared the minutes of Sunday’s working committee meeting and presented them before a two-member bench of the Supreme Court on Tuesday hearing the 2013 IPL betting-fixing case.

But the same Board has, rather strangely, not yet circulated the notice convening the special general meeting (SGM), said office-bearers of several BCCI affiliated associations on Wednesday evening.

Some members, led by Shashank Manohar, the Vidarbha representative at Sunday’s meeting and a former BCCI president, had sought the SGM and interim Board president Shaivlal Yadav had agreed to convene one.

“We have not received the notice for the SGM till today,” the president of a state association told Mail Today on April 23. The secretary of another association confirmed that.

“We are not happy with the way the Board is functioning,” the association president said. “If they can prepare the minutes of the working committee, they could have sent a one-line notice for the SGM too. It’s strange. They are clearly trying to delay the meeting.” 

Notices for Board meetings are circulated by the secretary’s office, first through e-mail and then a hard copy by courier. But Baroda-based Sanjay Patel’s office till Wednesday evening hadn’t sent the SGM notice. When Mail Today tried to contact Patel on his mobile, he did not respond.

The SGM has been sought to remove beleaguered president Srinivasan as head of the disciplinary committee as he has asked by the Supreme Court to stay away from the Board’s affairs until at least a new inquiry committee submits its report.

The court has asked Srinivasan to temporarily keep away as his son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan is one of the people allegedly involved in the 2013 IPL betting-fixing scandal. Besides, he himself is in a conflict-of-interest position as he owns IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings while being a BCCI office-bearer.

The group opposed to Srinivasan alleged that since secretary Sanjay Patel belongs to the president’s group, he was intentionally delaying the SGM notice to buy time.

In normal circumstances, a SGM is called by the secretary, on instructions from the president at 21 day’s notice. But, according to the Board constitution, if the secretary fails to convene an SGM at the president’s direction, or on a resolution of a working committee, the president himself can convene the meeting.

(This story first appeared in Mail Today on April 24)

‘Revamp draft’ a crude attempt to hijack ICC, asserts its former president Ehsan Mani

Says it shows ICC governance has reached its nadir

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

By Qaiser Mohammad Ali

New Delhi: Describing an attempt by the Indian, Australian and English Boards to “hijack the ICC” as a proof of its governance reaching an “absolute nadir”, former president of the world body Ehsan Mani on Friday claimed he could make a case that the affluent BCCI doesn’t need ICC money at all.

Mani, a chartered account who was ICC president from 2003-2006, didn’t rule out a split in the cricket world because of this attempt by the ‘Big Three’, but was confident that Indian public opinion would not allow BCCI to get away with its plans and be deprived of competitive cricket.

BCCI, the world’s richest cricket Board worth Rs 3,621.94 crore, along with Cricket Australia (CA) and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has prepared a draft containing a revolutionary proposal to revamp ICC’s structure, governance, and financial model.

“I was getting information and vibes that something was cooking, much before the draft was presented at a January 9 ICC meeting and later was leaked to the media. I was absolutely horrified and shocked when I read the draft three days ago. This shows total disregard to the ICC,” Mani told Mail Today in an interview.

“I was involved with the ICC for 17 years (1989-2006) and know its history since 1909. It’s one of the most dangerous things to have happened to the ICC, and I say this very categorically,” he said.

“It’s a crude attempt at total hijacking of the ICC by the three Boards,” he said. “It’s a big insult to the other 100-plus ICC member countries.” 

Mani, who negotiated the 2007-2015 media rights deal worth $1.1 billion with ESPN-STAR Sports, indicated that the BCCI can survive on its own as its media and broadcast rights deals are lucrative, besides the money- spinning IPL.

“The BCCI doesn’t need ICC money. I can make a very strong case of BCCI not needing the money. The whole model of [ICC money] distribution is wrong. In all other international federations the weaker nations get more funds,” he said, referring to the current structure and also that mentioned in the ‘position paper’.

BCCI is projected as the biggest beneficiary in the proposal. But it’s also a hard fact that the N Srinivasan-headed Indian Board today controls cricket commerce and is driving changes in world cricket as a consequence.

Guessing the genesis of the problem, the London-based Mani said that the fear of upsetting BCCI might have prompted Australia and England to align with it.

“This [the attempt] is nothing new. Since Australia and England could be worried about upsetting BCCI, they became loyal to the Indian Board [in preparing the draft],” he said.

“It shows inherent weakness in ICC governance. It’s far weaker than when Jagmohan Dalmiya [1997-2000], Malcolm Gray [2000-2003] or when I was there. Percy Sonn [2006-2007] unfortunately died during his tenure. David Morgan [2008-10] tried to fix it, but now it has reached an absolute nadir,” Mani thundered.

The ICC Executive Board will discuss the draft next week in Dubai. Mani hasn’t lost hope. “An independent tribunal should look into the draft,” he said. 

When asked if he would be willing to help resolve the developing crisis, Mani said he would be eady to step in, if aksed. “But I would like the 'three' countries to resolve the issue.” 

(This interview first appeared in Mail Today on January 25, 2014)