Pawar cut in Kolkata

The turnaround — real and implicit — rested on two key issues. First, a division bench of Kolkata High Court, hearing a petition filed by Kalighat Cricket Club and the Karnataka State Cricket Association, nullified the appointment of the observers from outside the state, former Chief Justices KN Singh and MM Punchhi.

That left Kolkata-based retired judge S C Sen, appointed on Wednesday, as the lone observer for the elections. Suddenly the Pawar camp was on the defensive.

The second issue concerned Pawar’s nomination. The Union Agriculture Minister had been nominated for the president’s post by Jammu & Kashmir but there were fears within his camp that it would be rejected because of complications arising from Article 370.

Neither does Pawar have the option of switching associations because it’s the North Zone’s turn to nominate a president and with Mahendra controlling Haryana, Delhi and Himachal, and Punjab following a no-outsiders policy, he has nowhere to turn.

Yet Dalmiya didn’t go for the kill, as he could have, by pressing for elections today. That, as one of his aides said, is because he doesn’t have the numbers.

So after months of strategising, legal tussles, campaigning, political pressure and rhetoric, it boiled down to one team unsure of a leader and the other of its numbers.

Which leaves some hope for that favourite result, the compromise formula. There were some signs — though of insufficient importance yet — of this when one saw Pawar, Mahendra and IS Bindra in a huddle away from the crowd. Soon after, a smiling Mahendra announced that the AGM had been adjourned amicably and listed the other issues discussed.

Among them: Sharad Pawar’s inclusion in the high-profile committee to decide on the multi-crore television rights issue. At least someone got some work done today.