Nothing Political About It: Cricketers, Professional Clubs Set To Manage JKCA After Jan 16 Elections

The election for the office bearers of the Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association (JKCA) is set to be held on January 16 from among cricketers and professional clubs in a departure from the past practice of politicians vying to manage the affairs of the premier sports body.

The election is being held following the directions issued by the Supreme Court in November that said that the panel of new office bearers be formed within  12 weeks under the supervision of former Chief Election Commissioner Achal Kumar Jyoti, as an Electoral Officer.

A notification issued by the JKCA has approved the list of authorised representatives of 21 clubs across the Union Territory who will have the right to vote in the upcoming elections. The new body will replace the BCCI appointed subcommittee, which was formed in June 2021, comprising BJP leaders Anil Gupta (member administration), Sunil Sethi (member legal affairs), and former cricketer Vidya Bhaskar. In November last year, Bhaskar replaced Mithun Manhas as a member after his election as BCCI President.

BJP leader Sunil Sethi, who is also the party’s chief spokesperson, resigned as JKCA member after the Supreme Court announced elections to constitute the new body.

Gupta says that after the constitution of the JKCA was approved by the Supreme Court, the affiliated clubs will only have the right to vote in the elections. “The clubs will form the electoral college, and their nominees will only be able to contest the election,” he says.

The contest this month will elect five office bearers for the posts of president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, and joint secretary of the JKCA. Both the voting and the declaration of election results will take place on January 16. As per the JKCA constitution, the term of office of an elected member shall be three years, and people are ineligible to contest if they would have remained office bearers for more than three terms.

In the past, the JKCA elections have been held on political lines, with former chief minister and National Conference president Farooq Abdullah remaining its president for a long time. The NC leader’s tenure was mired in controversy as the Enforcement Directorate filed a charge sheet against him, alleging that from 2006 to 2012, Abdullah misused his position to make illegal appointments of office-bearers who were given financial powers to  “launder funds” during his tenure as JKCA president. NC has, however, described these charges as a political witch hunt by the BJP.

Alongside the approval of the list of 21 associated clubs for voting rights, the representatives of some clubs were   denied the right to contest elections or to vote on January 16. The nomination of Kashmir Cricket Club, Srinagar, and Youth Cricket Club, Bhaderwah, has been rejected, and their names figured in the list of approved affiliated clubs which form the electoral college of this month's contest.

Former vice president of BCCI Motilal Nehru, says that the action against his Kashmir Cricket Club was initiated as they went to the Supreme Court to seek the constitution of the elected body. “The action was taken against us as we wanted the JKCA should run on professional lines,” he says.

BJP leader Sunil Sethi also described the rejection of his nomination as an arbitrary action. However, a JKCA official says that those whose nomination was rejected couldn’t support the claims of holding the membership of a cricket club on a continuous basis. Earlier, the voting rights of two clubs in Kashmir were suspended citing their alleged involvement in the JKCA cricket scam.

Club members see the changes that have been brought through the Supreme Court-approved JKCA constitution, including restricting the Ministers and government officials as a means to promote cricket talent in the UT.

A new provision has been enacted that a person shall be disqualified from being an office bearer, a member of the apex council, governing council, or any committee of JKCA, if he or she has attained the age of 70 years, or is a Minister or government official, or has been an office bearer of the JKCA for a period of 9 years. Further, a person would cease to be the office bearer on being convicted by a court for the commission of a criminal offence and sentenced to imprisonment.

Javed Ahmad Kitab, a nominee of the Muslim Cricket Club Sopore, welcomed these changes. He says that the elections were a welcome step and will enable the professional cricketers and the affiliate clubs to ensure the promotion of sports talent. “There are certain changes which have been introduced, like the implementation of the Lodha Commission recommendations, which put an age bar on those who could contest elections. Measures like denying government officials and ministers the chance to be office bearers will only improve the functioning of JKCA,” he says.