KSCA to go ahead with polls despite Lodha panel diktat

Despite the Lodha Committee's directive to the Karnataka State Cricket Association on Wednesday to place on hold the elections scheduled to be held on August 7, the KSCA has decided to go ahead with the polls, contesting that the process was initiated on July 11, before the Supreme Court verdict on July 18.

After a complainant brought the election process to the notice of the Committee, Gopal Sankaranarayanan, secretary , Lodha Committee, in an email to the KSCA stated: "It has been brought to the notice of this Committee that certain elections are proposed to be conducted for your association. As you are aware, the Hon'ble Supreme Court has by way of its judgment dated 18.7.2016 charged this Committee with supervising the implementation of the transition from the extant Rules to those approved by the Hon'ble Court.

"In this regard, and in pursuance of the directions of the Hon'ble Supreme Court, the Committee directs that all elections and other proceedings attendant there to be placed on hold pending further directions from this Committee. No further proceedings may be taken in this regard."

The KSCA, which has sought legal opinion in this regard, said it was willing to implement the recommendations. "The committee may have felt that we started the process after the verdict, but we have clarified to them that the process began on July 11.We have replied to it saying we are conducting the elections according to the existing bylaws. All the recommendations of the Lodha Committee is being considered for this election itself.We have also taken a legal opinion. We also want to move a resolution in the AGM for the speedy implementation of the Lodha Committee report. We are positive and we want to implement all the recommendations," said KSCA spokesperson Vinay Mruthyunjaya.

The email sent to KSCA follows the letter sent to the Indian cricket board by the Lodha Committee to freeze all elections following the apex court's verdict.

The other associations which will be affected by this directive are the Cricket Association of Bengal, which was to go to polls on July 31, and the Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association, which held its elections on Tuesday.

Extracts from the Lodha panel letter to the BCCI:

The Committee is in the process of preparing an action plan along with timelines as directed by the Hon'ble Supreme Court to implement the reforms and supervise the transition as swiftly as possible. Until further intimations in this regard, it is directed that the BCCI and the State Associations keep on hold all elections and electoral processes under the Rules existing as on 18.7.2016. The same may be conveyed to all the various Members and State Associations by the BCCI.Needless to say, any steps taken after the Hon'ble Supreme Court's judgment which are inconsistent with its directions will be treated as null and void.