Verma cries foul, Chowdhary stoic

CHENNAI: The T20 series between India and Australia beginning on October 7 in Ranchi has started making news off the field. It’s not Virat Kohli firing verbals or Steve Smith’s teams playing mind games. Accusing organisers Jharkhand State Cricket Association (JSCA) of malpractices like allowing former president Amitabh Chowdhary to continue as signatory, Aditya Verma has approached the Committee of Administrators (CoA) seeking an observer for the match.

Peititoner in the IPL spot-fixing case that has shaken the BCCI’s administrative structure, Verma has been a vocal critic of the JSCA and Chowdhary for a long time. In his letter to the CoA dated October 2, he described the state body as “unauthorized and unlawful” for letting Chowdhary access one of its bank accounts as signatory on July 18, after he had resigned as JSCA president following the Supreme Court order on Lodha recommendations.

A seasoned administrator and acting secretary of the BCCI in the absence of an elected secretary, Chowdhary refused to react to Verma’s latest allegation. “Isn’t he the same person who said sometime last year that I was putting pressure on MS Dhoni to retire as ODI captain? Therefore, I don’t feel it’s necessary to respond to what he is saying,” said Chowdhary, when Express sought his reaction to Verma’s charge that he was a signatory of the JSCA despite having resigned as president.

Verma’s letter also says that acting JSCA president Kuldeep Singh is ineligible to hold office, since he needs a cooling-off break of three years after having served as vice-president from 2013-16. It adds that “all these illegalities are happening under the nose of the CoA” and the court-appointed body headed by Vinod Rai should interfere. The letter ends by saying that an “administrator/observer” should be appointed for the Ranchi match.

During the period they have been in charge of the board, the CoA appointed an observer for the India-Bangladesh Test in Hyderabad in February. Ratnakar Shetty, BCCI’s general manager, administration & game development, was given the responsibility. The match was hosted by a newly-elected body which said it had no funds. It was learnt that a call on Verma’s letter on the Ranchi match would be taken on or after Tuesday.The JSCA has hosted six international matches at its own stadium since 2013, including an inaugural Test against Australia in March. The only T20 there, between India and Sri Lanka, took place in February 2016.
atreyo@newindianexpress.com