The Delhi High Court today dismissed the objections raised by members of the controversy-ridden DDCA against amendments like the abolition of proxy voting to its Articles of Association (AoA) proposed by a court-appointed administrator.
Justices S Ravindra Bhat and A K Chawla directed the administrator, former Supreme Court judge Vikramajit Sen, to ensure that the proposed amendments, including the setting up of independent selection committees and process, are incorporated in the AoA of the Delhi and Districts Cricket Association and published in two weeks.
The court also asked Justice Sen to take steps to ensure that elections to the DDCA in accordance with the amended AoA are held within eight weeks from today.
The proposed amendments also included making players’ representatives and women a part of its governing body, laying down eligibility conditions for being appointed as an office-bearer or director and affiliated clubs being required to provide details of disbursement of funds provided by DDCA and submit accounts to it.
DDCA’s general body, at a meeting held in September last year, had in a resolution rejected almost all the amendments proposed by the administrator.
Rejecting the DDCA general body’s objections to the amendments, like capping of tenure of posts at nine years, the high court said that objective of ensuring that the same people or a clutch of individuals do not maintain their control over sport bodies like cricket associations “is to encourage budding talent and promote fresh blood, not only in the sport, but also in the management of its affairs”.
“By occupying one executive or decision making position in an organisation after another, a set of individuals can shut out an entire generation of new talent, which would possess greater energy and be more open to innovation,” it said in its 62-page judgement.
The amendments proposed by the administrator were based on the recommendations of the apex court appointed Justice R M Lodha committee on the IPL controversy for reform in the Board of Control for Cricket in India, the high court had noted.
The other amendments that were proposed included retired players and coaches being part of the independent sports working committee, procurement of goods be through transparent tendering process, ticketing rules to ensure match tickets and complimentary passes are not pilfered and misused by Executive Committee members and DDCA to maintain accounts, cash registers, bills and balancesheet.
The administrator for proper functioning of DDCA was appointed during the ongoing hearing of a 2010 petition of the cricketing body seeking occupancy certificate from South Delhi Municipal Corporation to hold matches at the Ferozshah Kotla ground.
While upholding the amendments and directing their incorporation in DDCA’s AoA, the bench disposed the petition.
