The highly anticipated Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has been set on September 28, the day of the Asia Cup final. The general body will convene at the BCCI headquarters in Mumbai at 11:30 AM to hold elections for its office-bearers, among other matters.
Elections will be held for the positions of president, vice-president, secretary, joint secretary, and treasurer, Secretary Devajit Saikia announced in a message to state associations.
The AGM’s agenda also includes the creation of the BCCI’s Apex Council and the governing councils for the Women’s Premier League (WPL) and Indian Premier League (IPL). Two representatives from the Indian Cricketers’ Association and one person from the General Body will be inducted into the Apex Council by the BCCI.
Naturally, the main goal of the AGM will be to elect new officials to lead Indian cricket for the next three years or until the upcoming Sports Bill replaces the current constitution. Although it is unclear if the BCCI would have new elections once the Sports Bill takes effect in six months, the board has chosen to stick to the constitution that was suggested by the Lodha Committee and accepted by the Supreme Court.
As of right now, it appears that treasurer Prabhtej Singh Bhatia (Chhattisgarh) and joint secretary Rohan Gauns Dessai (Goa) will serve another term, as will secretary Saikia, who has only held the position for three years, first as joint secretary and then in the current one (for the past eight months). Both Dessai and Bhatia were elected to their positions earlier this year and are currently serving their first terms.
However, the identities of the president and vice-president remain unclear. While the candidate for the vice-president’s position is still up in the air, a well-known name is circulating internally for the president’s role. After Roger Binny had to resign as president in July due to his advanced age, Rajeev Shukla is currently serving in that capacity. Depending on how current IPL chairman Arun Singh Dhumal’s tenure is perceived, Shukla may be in line for a significant role, such as the chairmanship of the IPL.
Before taking over the IPL, Dhumal was the BCCI treasurer for three years, from 2019 to 2022.
According to the existing constitution, he must serve a three-year cooling-off period after holding offices for six years in a row. On whether the IPL chairman’s position counts as an office-bearer, there have been differing opinions. Dhumal might stay in his role if it doesn’t.
India
