Hyderabad: Finally giving hope to cricket lovers wishing for a cleansing of the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA), the Supreme Court on Tuesday appointed former apex court judge Justice L. Nageshwara Rao to “sort out the mess.”
Justice Rao, a cricketer himself and known for his integrity, recently set the Indian Olympic Association in order and prepared the electoral college. He was asked by the Supreme Court to lead the task of amending the IOA Constitution.
A three-member Supreme Court bench comprising Justice S.K. Kaul, Justice Manoj Misra and Justice Aravind Kumar observed that Justice Rao would be suitable to be appointed to head the single-member committee at the HCA. It directed the HCA to extend all assistance to Justice Rao.
“I heard the news and am waiting for the order. I have to begin the study (of the HCA),” said Justice Rao speaking to Deccan Chronicle.
The SC bench’s decision, made while dealing with applications in the matter of seeking timely conduct of polls to the HCA, will end incumbent president Mohd Azharuddin’s reign over the cricket body even after expiry of his term and also scrap the highly controversial supervisory committee, a majority of whose members have been extending, though tacitly, full support to Azharuddin. The supervisory committee consists of former judge Nisar Ahmed Kakru, DGP Anjani Kumar, former cricketer Venkatapathy Raju and Vanka Prathap. The committee is a divided with Kakru on one side, while the remaining three members are on the other side.
Deccan Chronicle had carried a series of reports highlighting the alleged corruption in HCA in particular the sale of tickets in the black market during international matches and selecting substandard players to the Ranji squad after taking bribes from them.
The latest report, ‘HCA supervisor panel report raises doubts,’ published in these columns on February 1 highlighted the biased approach of the majority committee members towards Azharuddin, making light of allegations against him and delaying the polls on the pretext of revising the electoral college.
In a blow to the majority members of the supervisory committee who have allegedly been trying to stall the elections that are over due to HCA, the apex court said: “We are of the view that the impasse must come to an end and a fair election held.”
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