Chennai, June 2 (IANS) BCCI president N. Srinivasan Sunday said nobody at the working committee meeting here had asked for his resignation and he had taken “an extraordinarily fair step” by stepping aside.
At BCCI’s emergency working committee meeting, Srinivasan agreed to “step aside” to make way for Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) president Jagmohan Dalmiya as an “interim president” in the wake of the spot fixing scandal in the recently concluded sixth edition of IPL.
Srinivasan’s son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan May 24 was arrested by the Mumbai police on charges of betting in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
“The meeting was very smooth. There was no acrimony. The members appreciated what were the tasks ahead of the BCCI. This announcement I made after all members had expressed their views. This was well received. Then Dalmiya was appointed. I have taken an extraordinarily fair step,” Srinivasan told NDTV.
Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) president I.S. Bindra, however, told the press after attending the meeting that he was the only one to ask for Srinivasan’s resignation. The BCCI chief, however, refuted this.
“Mr Bindra didn’t ask me to resign. After discussions, I announced I will not discharge my duty till the probe is completed. In the meanwhile, because the board has to function, the board asked Mr Dalmiya to take care of the things.”
Srinivasan also said that Sanjay Jagdale and Ajay Shirke, who Friday resigned as BCCI secretary and treasurer, respectively, have been asked to return.
“All of us requested Mr Jagdale and Mr Shirke to continue so that there is continuity. They said they will come back tomorrow. Ajay Shirke is my best friend. He said he will come back tomorrow. Even Sanjay Jagdale will get back to us tomorrow. Not a single person in the meeting challenged the decision,” added Srinivasan.
Asked whether the decision of the board was just, Srinivasan said: “You can call it fair or unfair or whatever, but this is fair. It was unanimous.
“This is an internal matter on how the board arranges itself. Mr Dalmiya is very experienced. Within the framework of the rules of the board, it can be managed. I am not going to discharge my functions (as BCCI president.”
On whether the probe into the spot fixing scam will be fair, he replied: “Why should I answer if the probe will be fair? This is an unfair question.”
The BCCI constitution does not provide for an “interim president”.
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