Lalit Modi’s troubles with the BCCI have reached not just his home state but also his home district.
On a day, when the suspended chairman of the IPL tasted a rare success in the recent times, his adversaries have tried to deny him any glory.
Saturday’s developments in Rajasthan may lead to another round of legal battles.
On Saturday morning, Modi was re-elected president of Nagaur District Cricket Association unopposed. He became the president of the district association for the third consecutive term. But by evening, the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA) said the elections were null and void and announced that Modi’s body had been disaffiliated.
An RCA release said as per Article 25B of its constitution, a member, suspended by the state or national association cannot contest in the election of any district body. According to the release, Modi’s association has been disaffiliated and a new body has been given affiliation. “The decision has the approval of RCA’s general body,” said an official of the state body.
But a release by the Modi camp stated that the elections to the Nagaur District Cricket Association were held under the stewardship of MR Farooqui, a retired district and session judge, and that representatives of the state government and the district sport officer were present during the election.
Modi’s camp also rejected the RCA’s contention of disaffiliation. “Some disgruntled elements are spreading nuisance by claiming that a parallel body has been formed in the Nagaur District Cricket Association. As per the Rajasthan Sports Act, 2005, there can be only one district association in a district and any other person or body other than the authorised sports association claim to be the sport association of a given district will invite penal provisions as under the Sports Act. It is an offence to unauthorisedly claim to be a sports association,” Mehmood Abdi, Modi’s general counsel said.
“The so-called parallel body, if there is any, is being claimed by persons who are not even the members of the district and their civil suit seeking membership has been stayed by the honourable Jodhpur bench of the Rajasthan high court as such a non-member cannot claim to hold elections of a body of which he is not a member,” Abdi claimed.
