Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Sept 3: The Board for Cricket Control in India (BCCI) informed the High Court that elections to the Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association (JKCA) are required to be urgently held.
The BCCI is intending to file an application in this connection before the High Court.
Appearing on behalf of BCCI in a bunch of petition relating to JKCA affairs and issues, Senior counsel Sunil Sethi before the Court submitted that there are other three petitions pending at Jammu wing of High Court and sought consolidation of these petitions in Srinagar wing of High Court and heard together in order to prevent conflict of orders passed by the court.
“The submission appears to be fair. On request of Sunil Sethi, senior counsel list on September 11, 2020. Let the Registrar Judicial, Jammu, take steps for listing of writ petitions pending at Jammu wing also on the aforesaid date and consolidation for hearing with the instant appeal and writ petitions”, Division Bench of Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice Puneet Gupta said.
It may be noted that the JKCA is without elected body since from May 2017 and its affairs are observed and conducted by the two administrators and a CEO appointed by the court to ensure free and fair elections of JKCA as the term of JKCA has expired in the month of May 2017 and in view of inter-se dispute between the office bearers and two factions (Abdullah faction & Ansari faction) who were fighting various cases and claim the genuine association of JKCA.
Justice CK Prasad retired Judge of the Supreme Court and Justice Syed Rafat Alam Chief Justice of MP are the administrators of the J&K Cricket Association and Chief Executive Officer Ashiq Hussain Bukhari (Retd. DIG). Court on July 2018 had directed them to run the affairs of the Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association till elections of the Association are held.
Court on calling the records of writ petitions from Jammu wing which advocate Sethi referred said, there is no need to call for the original record of the petitions. However, the Court directed the Registry to attach the digitized record of the aforesaid writ petitions along for consideration on the next date of hearing.
During the proceedings of the case advocate Mohsin Qadir counsel appearing for some Clubs submitted that an order dated 22.10.2019 has been passed by the Supreme Court of India whereby the order dated 14.03.2019 has been overruled in Civil Appeal No. 4235/2014 titled Board of Control for Cricket and others v. Cricket Association of Bihar and others.
He submitted before the bench that there is no impediment to this Court for entertaining or hearing this writ petition as has been done in the case titled Delhi and District Cricket Association versus Sudhir Kumar Aggarwal and others as well.
Court has kept these petitions pending in view of direction passed on 14.3.2019 wherein Supreme Court had directed that till amicus curie, submitted a report, it desirable that no court/tribunal in India shall entertain or proceed with any matter pertaining to BCCI or any State Cricket Association(s) involved.
Qadri through the medium of the writ petition sought quashment of decision dated 29.10.2019 passed by nominated Ombudsman, J&K Cricket Association, on the ground that the impugned decision is beyond the scope of the reference made by the Division Bench of this court in a common order passed on 06.12.2017. Court has been informed that the decision of the ombudsman being beyond the reference of the order of the court is not only bad in law but also against the principle of court directions.
As per guidelines provided by Lodha penal, administrators and CEO with BCCI is required to incorporate recommendations of the Lodha Committee in the rules of Association and then to conduct the election of JKCA in accordance with the guidelines provided by the Lodha Committee.
Supreme Court has already directed that all office bearers of BCCI and its affiliated associations which fail to meet the norms recommended by the Lodha Committee as accepted by apex court shall forthwith demit and cease to hold the office.
Follow our WhatsApp channel
