Mumbai: The much-awaited Special General Meeting of the Board of Control for Cricket in India will be held in Mumbai on October 4. The meeting will elect a new president following the death of Jagmohan Dalmiya, who passed away in Kolkata on September 20.
Former BCCI president Shashank Manohar is widely expected to take over as the new chief. His name has to be proposed and seconded by East Zone, whose turn it is to nominate a Board president till 2017. Manohar, who became BCCI president in 2008, is a Nagpur-based lawyer and represents Vidarbha Cricket Association.
The last date for filing of nominations for the president is October 3. So far, Manohar seems to enjoy the support of the BCCI factions. Last week, Manohar, a close associate of ex-BCCI head Sharad Pawar, emerged as a consensus candidate after he was reportedly backed by the Anurag Thakur-Arun Jaitley (BJP) faction.
“Shashank Manohar is our consensus candidate,” Thakur told media, adding that if an election happens, “N Srinivasan can come and vote at the SGM”.
The Supreme Court hearing on Srinivasan’s eligibility on attending BCCI meeting is slated for October 5. Thakur said Srinivasan can not attend the meeting but he was not barred from casting his vote.
The only opposition that Manohar, 58, may face is from the N. Srinivasan lobby. The former BCCI president had met Pawar in Nagpur for support but everything fizzled out after Manohar refused to align with Srinivasan’s group. Manohar has backing from Pawar-Thakur factions, who control about 20 votes out of 29.
Manohar, known for his clean image, wanted to stay clear of Srinivasan, who is facing conflict of interest issues in court following the 2013 IPL betting and match-fixing scandal involving his son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan.