73-year-old Niranjan on panel
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Wednesday, in a surprise move, decided to include former Saurashtra Cricket Association (SCA) president Niranjan Shah as a special invitee in the newly-formed committee which will study the Lodha Panel reforms.
What is inexplicable is Shah is 73 years old, and has been running SCA for last three decades. He stands "disqualified on all counts" as per the Lodha Panel reforms.
In fact, a senior BCCI official said that Shah himself wanted to be a part of the committee and there were pressure from other 70 plus disqualified officials, who wanted representation in the committee.
"Amitabh Choudhary seems helpless as Narayanswami Srinivasan has again started calling the shots. Shah was insistent that he should be taken in the committee. Accordingly, he was included today and the number of members have now increased to eight," a senior BCCI official said.
Many BCCI officials, however, are unable to digest that though Shah's career in cricket administration seems to be over, the Rajkot business magnet doesn't want to give up.
"Look at the Lodha reforms. Niranjan bhai is 73 years old and age cap is 70 years. His cumulative time in the state organisation and the BCCI is more than three decades.
"So he has crossed the 18-year limit. Also, the three year cooling off period doesn't apply as he has spent more than 18 years.
"If someone could only tell us what will be his utility in the committee?" a senior state unit president said.
The committee led by Rajeev Shukla also has Amitabh Choudhary, Aniruddh Chaudhry, TC Matthew, Sourav Ganguly, Jay Shah and Naba Bhattacharjee.
The committee's mandate is to "identify the few critical points in respect of the said judgement for the general body of the BCCI to consider before its submission to the Hon'ble Supreme Court".
The decision to form the committee was taken at the BCCI's SGM in Mumbai on Monday.
"In view of the fact that the next date of hearing (in the Supreme Court) in the matter is fixed for July 14, 2017, the committee is requested to fix an early date for its meeting in order to ensure that the above task is undertaken with utmost urgency and its written report circulated by July 10, 2017 so that the same may be considered by the general body and finalised prior to the above hearing," Choudhary had said in a statement.
"BCCI acting president CK Khanna will be apprised on a regular basis on the deliberations of the committee and the report shall finally be submitted to him to present it to the General Body," he had further added.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Wednesday, in a surprise move, decided to include former Saurashtra Cricket Association (SCA) president Niranjan Shah as a special invitee in the newly-formed committee which will study the Lodha Panel reforms.
What is inexplicable is Shah is 73 years old, and has been running SCA for last three decades. He stands "disqualified on all counts" as per the Lodha Panel reforms.
In fact, a senior BCCI official said that Shah himself wanted to be a part of the committee and there were pressure from other 70 plus disqualified officials, who wanted representation in the committee.
"Amitabh Choudhary seems helpless as Narayanswami Srinivasan has again started calling the shots. Shah was insistent that he should be taken in the committee. Accordingly, he was included today and the number of members have now increased to eight," a senior BCCI official said.
Many BCCI officials, however, are unable to digest that though Shah's career in cricket administration seems to be over, the Rajkot business magnet doesn't want to give up.
"Look at the Lodha reforms. Niranjan bhai is 73 years old and age cap is 70 years. His cumulative time in the state organisation and the BCCI is more than three decades.
"So he has crossed the 18-year limit. Also, the three year cooling off period doesn't apply as he has spent more than 18 years.
"If someone could only tell us what will be his utility in the committee?" a senior state unit president said.
The committee led by Rajeev Shukla also has Amitabh Choudhary, Aniruddh Chaudhry, TC Matthew, Sourav Ganguly, Jay Shah and Naba Bhattacharjee.
The committee's mandate is to "identify the few critical points in respect of the said judgement for the general body of the BCCI to consider before its submission to the Hon'ble Supreme Court".
The decision to form the committee was taken at the BCCI's SGM in Mumbai on Monday.
"In view of the fact that the next date of hearing (in the Supreme Court) in the matter is fixed for July 14, 2017, the committee is requested to fix an early date for its meeting in order to ensure that the above task is undertaken with utmost urgency and its written report circulated by July 10, 2017 so that the same may be considered by the general body and finalised prior to the above hearing," Choudhary had said in a statement.
"BCCI acting president CK Khanna will be apprised on a regular basis on the deliberations of the committee and the report shall finally be submitted to him to present it to the General Body," he had further added.
