Kolkata: The Justice Lodha Committee, the overseer of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), today instructed the latter to ensure that the number of selectors be cut short to three, with Test match experience. This move by the Lodha Committee was actually in response to a query by the BCCI CEO, Rahul Johri.
In his letter to the Lodha Committee, Johri wrote, “We have to select the Rest of India team for the Irani Trophy and this is normally done on the last day of the Final of the Ranji Trophy match. However, please advise if we should call all 5 members or only three members with Test match experience as per the Hon’ble Supreme Court order.”
In reply, the secretary of the Lodha Committee, Gopal Shankarnarayan wrote, “It would be appropriate for further selections to be made by a three member selection committee. You may therefore prune the selection committee to three selectors with Test experience.”
According to the recommendations of the Lodha Committee, it can be clearly understood that two members in the current selection committee, Jatin Paranjpe and Gagan Khoda, both of who haven’t featured in the game’s longest format stand disqualified from choosing the Rest of India team which would, traditionally complete against the Ranji Trophy champions in the Irani Trophy.
This recommendation made by the former Chief Justice of India, RM Lodha- led committee comes right after the fact that some ineligible and disqualified BCCI and State association members were proving to be stumbling blocks in the proper conduct of the matches.
A meeting comprising the three members of the Lodha Committee, Justice Lodha, former Judges, Ashok Bhan and RV Raveendran in Delhi resulted in the decision by the body. An order by the apex body on January 3 said that the office bearers who had completed nine years of service either in the BCCI or any state associations stands ineligible of holding any office.
Meanwhile, the Lodha Committee, answering to a set of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), made it clear that former BCCI, Secretary, Ajay Shirke has ended his journey as an administrator. Former India skipper, Sourav Ganguly, tipped to be the next BCCI president, will have to ‘undergo’ a cooling period from June, 2017.
(With inputs from Agencies)