Uncertainty over N Srinivasan attending BCCI Working Committee meeting

Srinivasan,who stepped aside as president,was a touch philosophical when contacted on Friday.

On a day when the Supreme Court sought replies from the Indian cricket board and its president about the constitution of an IPL inquiry panel,there was uncertainly over whether N Srinivasan would attend the BCCIs emergent working committee meeting on Sunday.

Srinivasan, who stepped aside as president,was a touch philosophical when contacted on Friday. Rupee is in a freefall. The country is in crisis and theres gloom everywhere. What does it matter if I attend a BCCI meeting or not, he said.

Cricket Association of Bihars Aditya Verma,the petitioner,described Fridays Supreme Courts decision a moral victory.

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He threatened to bring a charge of contempt against Srinivasan should the latter decide to attend the emergent working committee meeting.

BCCI vice-president Niranjan Shah said that the ball was in Srinivasans court when it came to him attending the working committee meeting.

See,theres no bar on Srinivasan attending the meeting. Its a question of moral propriety and it varies from person to person. Srinivasan himself is the best judge in this situation and we cant enforce anything on him, Shah told The Indian Express. However,Verma said that if Srinivasan attends the working committee meeting it would only put the Board of Control for Cricket in India in a deeper mess.

AGM date

On the top of the agenda of Sundays emergent working committee meeting is fixing the date of the BCCIs Annual General Meeting (AGM),scheduled to be held in the last week of September. However,the question being raised in certain quarters is whether or not the interim arrangement with Jagmohan Dalmiya as interim president will force a postponement of the AGM.

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I dont think so. Theres no problem in holding an AGM with an interim head looking after the BCCIs day-to-day affairs, Shah said.

SC issues notice to BCCI on probe

Express news service

New Delhi,August 30

The Supreme Court on Friday sought replies from the BCCI and its president N Srinivasan on a petition for a court order to appoint a fresh panel to probe alleged irregularities in the IPL.

A bench of Justices A K Patnaik and J S Khehar also issued notices to Chennai Super Kingss owner India Cements India and Rajasthan Royal,seeking their responses to a fresh petition by Cricket Association of Bihar (CAB),by September 11.

The CAB has moved the apex court against the Bombay High Courts refusal to appoint by its order a new panel to investigate the IPL spot-fixing scandal and other alleged illegalities,involving various players from the IPL teams.

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In this fresh petition,the Bihar association has contended the High Court could either have formed a new commission or monitored a fresh panel formed by the BCCI.

The BCCI had already approached the court against the High Courts July 30-order,declaring the IPL probe panel as illegal and unconstitutional. The CAB had filed a PIL in the High Court.

Clean chit

The IPL probe panel,comprising two former judges of the Madras High Court Justices T Jayarama Chouta and R Balasubramanian,had submitted its report,giving a clean chit to all those against whom the probe was conducted.

The report gave a clean chit to BCCI president-in-exile N Srinivasans son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan and Rajasthan Royals co-promoter Raj Kundra in the spot fixing and betting scandal,paving the way for Srinivasans return to the board.

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The BCCI,referring to its power under the BCCI rules,challenged this order in the apex court ,which agreed to hear the appeal but restrained the apex cricketing body from acting on the finding of the IPL probe panel.