*Ancestral village rejoices in Doda
Ranjit Thakur
MUMBAI/BHADERWAH, Sept 28: Mithun Manhas, former Delhi cricket captain, has been elected the 37th president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) during the 94th Annual General Meeting at the board’s headquarters. Manhas, aged 45, succeeds Roger Binny, who stepped down last month after reaching the BCCI’s retirement age of 70.
Manhas’s new role marks an important chapter in Indian cricket administration, promising renewed energy and vision for the future of the sport in the country.
Manhas is the third consecutive First-Class cricketer to have taken over as the board’s president after Binny and former captain Sourav Ganguly. Manhas, who featured in 157 First-Class, 130 List A and 55 IPL matches between 1997-98 and 2016-17, had emerged as the frontrunner following an informal meeting of the board’s power brokers in New Delhi on September 20 ahead of the final day of nomination.
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He also served as the director of a three-member ad-hoc committee formed by the BCCI to manage the affairs of the Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association (JKCA) due to alleged mismanagement.
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Manhas, who has an impressive tally of 9,714 First-Class runs with 27 centuries to go with 4,126 runs in List A matches, said he would rely on his experience as a player and administrator.
“It’s an absolute honour to be the president of the world’s finest cricket board. It’s a huge responsibility as well. I give my assurance that I’ll be committed to do it to the best of my ability and dedication and passion,” Manhas told the media here.
“Maybe my work, my credentials… both as an administrator, as well as a cricketer. For the past four years, I’ve been working with the JKCA, we have done reasonably well and it will certainly help,” he said when asked about the factors that worked in his election as the board’s president.
The AGM also confirmed a few other key appointments with BCCI secretary Saikia and IPL Governing Council chairman Arun Dhumal retaining their posts, while former India cricketer and Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) president Raghuram Bhat taking charge as the treasurer.
Veteran administrator Rajeev Shukla will continue as the board’s vice-president while M Khairul Jamal Majumdar was named as one of the two representatives in the IPL GC along with Dhumal.
Prabhtej Bhatia moved from the post of BCCI’s treasurer to joint secretary, replacing Rohan Gauns Dessai and Saurashtra Cricket Association president Jaydev Shah became the apex council member as general body representative.
Former India internationals RP Singh and Pragyan Ojha were inducted into the men’s selection panel, while ex-Tamil Nadu batter S Sharath returned to the junior selection committee. Sharath was a member of the senior selection committee till now.
The Ajit Agarkar-chaired committee now comprises former India players Shiv Sundar Das, Ajay Ratra, RP Singh and Ojha. In the women’s selection panel, former India cricketer Amita Sharma replaced Neetu David as its chairperson.
Welcoming Manhas’ election, former India spinner Harbhajan Singh, who attended the AGM as Punjab Cricket Association’s representative, said a cricketer at the helm of affairs of the Board was a positive step.
Meanwhile, celebrations broke out in Mithun Manhas’ ancestral village after the former Delhi captain’s ascension to BCCI presidency, with the people terming it a moment of pride for the region.
Celebrating the success of the “son of the soil”, who had risen to the pinnacle of Indian cricket administration, the residents of remote Dossa village of Bhalessa in Gandoh tehsil of Doda district, recalled his family’s connection to the place with pride.
“Our brother Manhas has made the entire village proud,” Yog Raj Manhas said, summing up the joy and sense of achievement that gripped the community. He said the former player’s appointment to the highest cricketing post in the country is a big achievement for the village, especially the Manhas family, in one of the remotest parts of the country.
He said all the people are saying that there is a lot of talent in J&K and “we are hopeful that he will utilise his resources to work on that talent so that more cricketers emerge from our land”.
“We want better infrastructure for our youngsters including stadiums.” “There is a lot of backwardness in our village and we are very happy that one of our cousins became the president of the BCCI. It is not an ordinary achievement and we know he will shine and make the country proud,” said Niha Manhas.
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