Under fire, Mumbai selectors resign
MUMBAI: The members of the Mumbai Cricket Association’s (MCA) senior selection committee tendered their resignations on Friday, bowing to the pressure from the MCA members.
The MCA’S ad-hoc committee was to meet on Friday to decide the fate of Ajit Agarkar-led committee but before the meeting could take place, the selectors emailed their resignation letters to the ad-hoc committee and MCA chief executive CS Naik. Later in the day, MCA’S Cricket Improvement Committee (CIC) members Amol Muzumdar and Sahil Kukreja also tendered their resignations. In their meeting a fortnight ago, the CIC had backed the selection committee.
Last month, during a special general meeting (SGM) MCA members had unanimously passed a no confidence motion against senior selectors and directed the CIC to appoint new selectors as per the provisions of the law.
According to the sources, the selectors may have got a sniff of the axe falling on them and that is why they decided to resign.
HT had reported on Thursday that decision regarding them staying or not will be taken in Friday’s meeting. Other members of the selection committee were Nilesh Kulkarni, Sunil More and Ravi Thakkar.
When the CIC met last week they decided to stick with the selectors, stressing that the commitment of the selectors can’t be questioned and submitted their report to the ad-hoc committee. With constant pressure from the group of members, the ad-hoc committee decided to take legal opinion on their powers to change the selection committee. Throughout the season, selectors were accused by some members of not watching local club games.
Khodadad Yazdegardi, the vice-president and cricket secretary of the Parsee Gymkhana, had called for the SGM last month, after he and members who supported him felt hard done by the selectors.