Supreme disorder in HCA Boardroom battle on interpretation of top court order

Monday’s Supreme Court order on restructuring cricket administration in the country has sent officials of the Hyderabad Cricket Association into a tizzy. While some are reading the order as is, others are interpreting it as per their own understanding.

Most of the buzz revolves around 9, number of years the apex court has set as the limit for an official to be part of administration. The order says “A person shall be disqualified from being an Office Bearer if he or she has been an Office Bearer for a cumulative period of 9 years.” While some are going by the technical definition that ‘Office Bearers’ implies president, vice-president/s, secretary, joint secretary/ secretaries and treasurer others are interpreting it as everyone who has served on the committee, including Executive Committee members.

A faction of HCA members are pointing to the Cricket Associations of Tripura and Vidarbha, who have adopted the Lodha recommendations that form the basis of the Supreme Court order and have included “Office bearer/ member of the Executive committee of the Association for a cumulative period of 9 years” in the disqualification clause in their constitutions.

By that measure, quite a few of HCA committee’s standing members would have to demit office as they would have served as EC members for more than nine years.

However, according to HCA’s (amended) Memorandum, Rules and Regulations 2012, Chapter-II, xiii. “Office Bearers of the Association shall be: President, five Vice-presidents, Hon. Secretary, Two Hon. Joint Secretaries, Hon. Treasurer.” The entire officiating body, along with 12 other members elected, is categorised as the Executive Committee.

Even otherwise, senior most Vice-President M. Narender Goud, a natural claimant to the President’s post after the top court’s order which disqualifies Arshad Ayub on the nine-year rule, says “years put in as executive committee member before the 2012 amendment would not count as Clubs from different divisions, not individual members, were given seats on the EC. We were only representing those clubs.”

Chapter IV — Management, point 2 in the old rule book terms EC members as “Six clubs from ‘A’ Division and two clubs from each of the other (three —B, C, D) Divisions.” It’s another matter that now the entire league falls under ‘A’ Division with sub-categories suffixed by numbers graded up to A-9.

Goud is confident the top court order is clearly in his favour and expects fellow officials to endorse it. “I leave it to their conscience. Those seeking clarifications should approach the Supreme Court,” he says referring to a section that is not in favour of his elevation.

Be that as it may, the two groups were in talks late into Wednesday evening to thrash out a truce when this edition went to bed. It’s time for the HCA to wake up and smell the coffee.

I leave it to their conscience (of elevating me as president). Those seeking clarifications should approach the Supreme Court. — M. NARENDER GOUD senior Vice President of the Hyderabad Cricket Association