Plea in HC for putting on hold DDCA elections

New Delhi: A plea was today moved in the Delhi High Court seeking a stay on the elections scheduled to be held on June 30 for selecting the managing committee of the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA).

The petition came up for hearing before Justice A K Chawla who said that since the issue of elections in the cricketing body was earlier dealt with by a division bench, a similar bench should hear the instant matters. It listed the matter for hearing before a larger bench on June 25.

The petition by Ravi Mehra has sought that the DDCA elections should not be held till the finalisation of the constitution of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

Mehra claimed that after finalisation of the BCCI constitution, changes may be required in the DDCA’s amended Articles of Association (AoA) which were proposed by court-appointed administrator — former Supreme Court judge Vikramajit Sen — and approved by the high court on March 23.

Besides this plea, two separate petitions were moved by persons whose candidature for the post of Treasurer in the cricketing body was rejected in accordance with the amended AoAs which provide for a cooling off period after demitting a post in DDCA.

The two petitions were moved by Ajay Sharma and Dinesh Saini seeking that they be permitted to contest the DDCA polls.

Advocate Pradeep Chhindra, appearing for the administrator, contended that the two petitions were not maintainable.

In the elections to be held on June 30 to select the cricketing body’s executive committee, former India Test player and Delhi legend Madan Lal Sharma, noted journalist Rajat Sharma and senior advocate Vikas Singh are vying for the post of President.

Pushpendra Chauhan, the younger brother of former India Test opener Chetan Chauhan, is contesting for the post of joint secretary, while Rajan Manchanda, younger brother of former treasurer Ravinder Manchanda, is also a contender for the same post.

The high court on April 15 had directed the DDCA Administrator to convene the cricketing body’s annual general body meeting and hold elections for its managing committee by June 30.

The administrator for proper functioning of the DDCA was appointed during the hearing of a 2010 petition of the cricketing body seeking occupancy certificate from South Delhi Municipal Corporation to hold matches at the Feroz Shah Kotla ground.

The DDCA is yet to obtain a final structural stability certificate for its Feroz Shah Kotla stadium’s old club house also known as R P Mehra block. 

On March 23, the high court had dismissed the objections raised by members of the controversy-ridden DDCA against amendments, like the abolition of proxy voting, to the AoA proposed the administrator.

The proposed amendments also included making players’ representatives and women a part of its governing body, laying down eligibility conditions for being appointed as an office-bearer or director and affiliated clubs being required to provide details of disbursement of funds provided by DDCA and submit accounts to it.

DDCA’s general body, at a meeting held in September last year, had in a resolution rejected almost all the amendments proposed by the administrator.

Rejecting the DDCA general body’s objections to the amendments, like capping of tenure of posts at nine years, the high court said the objective of ensuring that the same people or a clutch of individuals do not maintain their control over sport bodies like cricket associations “is to encourage budding talent and promote fresh blood, not only in the sport, but also in the management of its affairs”.