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Saturday, Sep 24, 2005

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BCCI meet adjourned

G. Viswanath

Let's meet in a congenial atmosphere, Dalmiya tells Pawar

KOLKATA: The 76th Annual General Meeting of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) was adjourned to an unspecified date following a short meeting among the former BCCI presidents, Inder Singh Bindra, Jagmohan Dalmiya, and Union Agriculture Minister and Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) president Sharad Pawar here on Friday. BCCI president Ranbir Singh Mahendra adjourned the meeting after taking the consent of the meeting. The AGM will be convened again before November 30.

After the Calcutta High Court set aside its own order of Thursday appointing the former Chief Justice of India, Justice K.N. Singh, and Justice M.N. Punchi as additional observers to oversee certain aspects of the AGM and the elections, Mr. Dalmiya went up to Mr. Pawar and suggested that in the "larger interest of the BCCI'' and to meet "in a congenial atmosphere,'' it would be better to adjourn the AGM to a future date. Mr. Pawar and Mr. Bindra agreed to the suggestion. Rajasthan Cricket Association president Lalit Modi was the lone dissenting voice.

A role model

"The BCCI is supposed to be a role model for sports federations in India. But it's only on paper. In the last two days we were giving a bad account of ourselves. Mr. Pawar's immediate response to my suggestion was fine and encouraging. We have to take the goodwill forward," said Mr. Dalmiya.

The BCCI gave indications of a compromise formula being hammered out by nominating Mr. Pawar and president of the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association N. Srinivasan to the Marketing Committee.

Following a petition filed by the BCCI and the Karnataka Cricket Association to quash the order it had passed on Thursday by appointing two more observers, the Calcutta High Court stayed the election process, but asked the BCCI to continue with the rest of the AGM agenda.

A little later the court gave a verdict in favour of the BCCI and the KSCA cancelling the appointment of the two observers, Justice Singh and Justice Punchi. In a few minutes the AGM was adjourned after the members adopted the secretary's report for 2004-05 and matters arising out of the minutes.

"Sidelined for long"

PTI reports:

Mr. Pawar said Mr. Srinivasan had been taken in the marketing committee on his recommendation. ``I wanted him. He had been sidelined for long.''

On his inclusion in the same committee, Mr. Pawar said that though he was initially not inclined to be part of it, he later agreed following requests from the members.

On the court cases surrounding the AGM, Mr. Pawar said, "In the last AGM, I had said that all these issues should be solved through discussions.''

Mr. Pawar asserted that there would be no compromise on the election issue with the ruling faction in the BCCI during the period of adjournment.

* * *

Ganguly not fit: Chappell

New Delhi: Indian cricket coach Greg Chappell has allegedly called captain Sourav Ganguly ``mentally and physically unfit,'' in a six-page e-mail sent to the Board of Control for Cricket in India president Ranbir Singh Mahindra.

In the mail, Mr. Chappell said the skipper was the reason behind a division in the team.

Mr. Ganguly was quoted in a newspaper report as having said: ``I have heard of the e-mail. Whatever I have to say, I will tell the Board. I hope the Board officials will call me.'' — ANI, PTI

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