‘BCA panel to induct new members’

Vadodara: Baroda Cricket Association (BCA) president Pranav Amin said on Sunday that the association may form a committee to induct new members. Two days ago, city BJP leaders had accused the association of not taking in new members for over two decades.
“The apex council will form a committee to consider inducting new members. But even if we open our membership, priority will be given to the former cricketers,” Amin told TOI on the sidelines of BCA’s annual general meeting (AGM) in the city.
City BJP chief Vijay Shah and MP Ranjan Bhatt had urged the BCA to start inducting new members and take up the issue in the AGM, claiming that they got representations from various sections of society regarding BCA membership.
But the membership issue was not discussed by any member or office-bearer during the AGM. Shah alleged that most of the BCA members are either members of some families or private clubs as well as co-operative societies. BJP’s move to meddle in the BCA’s membership issue surprised many as it was for the first time that a political party had directly intervened in the association’s affairs.
Shah also said that BJP has written a letter to the BCA regarding the membership issue. Amin, however, said, “I don’t have any knowledge of the letter. We will look into it once we get it.” Some BJP leaders have applied for the BCA membership over the last few years but their request is pending.
Shah, though, said that the party took up the membership issue for the benefit of cricket-loving Barodians. BCA currently has over 2,300 members and many of them have settled outside the city. Amin said that they didn’t increase the number of members as the BCA gives tickets of international cricket matches to its members and the earlier stadium didn’t have that much capacity for 2,000 to 4,000 seats separately.
“Now that we have a new stadium, we will think about the membership issue,” he added. BJP had even raked up the issue of domicile membership and asked the BCA to cancel membership of those who have shifted outside the city.