Jagmohan Dalmiya's days as the president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) are numbered, according to a highly placed source in the cricketing circles.
The Kolkata-based businessman, who has the Alzheimer's disease among other health complications, has not been attending office for several months. He was elected to the post in March this year.
According to the source, Sharad Pawar, who heads the Mumbai Cricket Association, called on Union finance minister Arun Jaitley a few days ago and convinced him that Dalmiya must go. Jaitley, who is said to be the final word on all cricketing matters in the Bharatiya Janata Party, is believed to have concurred with the sugar baron.
Several members want Pawar to take over from his bête noire. However, Pawar is reportedly "not keen" on occupying the chair again. After all, the former BCCI president has even helmed the International Cricket Council.
That said, he has told his confidantes that he will "respect" the decision of the members. The coronation, though, is still some time away. Back to the Dalmiya conundrum.
According to an influential member of the board, the Kolkata-based businessman cut a "sorry figure" by "turning up late" and "mumbling" a few sentences during the last working committee meeting in his hometown.
The meeting was adjourned sine die due to the presence of N Srinivasan and his conflict of interest issue. The member added that plans to get the 74-year-old Dalmiya out are "gathering momentum".
"He walked into the meeting room 40 minutes after the scheduled time. He sat down, read out three or four sentences from a piece of paper with the help of BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur, adjourned the meeting sine die, stood up and left the room. He has yet to attend a sub-committee meeting.
"He doesn't know what is happening because he can't remember anything," the member told dna on condition of anonymity. "The BCCI is an institution. It is hard to imagine how it can function without a working president.
Much as we feel for him, we can't allow this arrangement to continue. His son, Abhishek, is running the show. And the sad part is that the father doesn't even know what the son is doing. It's high time he stepped down. In fact, he will have to go. In a matter of months, the BCCI has gone from the sublime to the ridiculous," the member added.
By adjourning the meeting over the presence of Srinivasan, Dalmiya ended up exposing himself. "It was there for everybody to see. All these months, he was in hiding. But by appearing in front of the members, Dalmiya exposed himself. It's clear to the members that this person can't run the board," the member said.
Dalmiya can be overthrown only if three-fourths of the BCCI votes in favour of the matter. And the same can happen only after a special general body meeting is convened. But things may not go that far. "He will soon go sooner than you think," the member said.
