Upto Manohar now to rescue BCCI prez

MUMBAI: In the fight between the current BCCI president Anurag Thakur and the former president Shashank Manohar (in pic), the ball is now in the latter’s court.

The change in equation is due to the Supreme Court’s order on Friday asking Manohar to file a response of his version on the facts mentioned in Thakur’s affidavit. The apex court had sought an affidavit from Thakur clarifying whether he had asked the ICC CEO Dave Richardson for a letter saying the appointment of a CAG nominee in BCCI’s apex council as recommended by the Lodha committee would tantamount to government interference in the working of BCCI.

The Court’s order said the version in the affidavits submitted by the BCCI official, Ratnakar Shetty, and Thakur, did not match.

“BCCI denies that its President (Anurag Thakur) made a request to ICC to issue the letter. However, BCCI President’s pursuance of the Court’s directions accepts that he had made a request to the Chairman of ICC to issue a letter,” the order stated.

“Mr (Ratnakar) Shetty in his response to the status report claims that the CEO of ICC had “falsely” stated in his interview that the President of BCCI had requested ICC to issue the letter.”