In an attempt to resolve the complexities arising out of the Supreme Court verdict, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has appointed a four-member panel, comprising eminent lawyers, which will interact with the Supreme Court-appointed Justice R.M. Lodha committee.
The decision to appoint a panel, which will be headed by Retd. Justice Markandey Katju, was taken by the BCCI working committee during its meeting here on Tuesday. It was the first meeting of the governing body after last month’s Supreme Court judgement.
“The members were in one voice of the view that the recommendations were complex, and would involve large-scale changes to be implemented across the board. Many technical and legal aspects were likely to come up in the future,” said a BCCI statement.
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“Considering the complexities of the issue, it was unanimously decided that a panel headed by a retired judge of the Supreme Court and assisted by three eminent counsels, including Abhinav Mukerjee, the counsel of BCCI, be formed. This panel will be a single point interface for the BCCI to interact with the Justice Lodha Committee as well (as) advice and guide the BCCI. Accordingly, it was unanimously decided that Justice Markandey Katju will head the said panel.”
Katju, a former Chief Justice of Madras High Court and Delhi High Court, retired as a Supreme Court judge in September 2011.
He later served as the chairman of the Press Council of India. Justice Katju’s panel will interact with the Lodha Committee on August 9.
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List all doubts
Meanwhile, the BCCI has asked all its member units to list all the doubts and clarifications to be sought by the Lodha Committee and present them during the Special General Meeting, scheduled in New Delhi on Friday (August 5). They will then be forwarded to Justice Katju’s panel.
Tuesday’s meeting was attended by several bigwigs, including the Mumbai Cricket Association and Cricket Association of Bengal chiefs Sharad Pawar and Sourav Ganguly.
The working committee, quite expectedly, approved the proposed two T20Is against the West Indies, to be played in the United States later this month. The matches will held in Lauderdale on August 27 and 28.
BCCI president Anurag Thakur said the series “will be developed into an annual cricketing event in the United States”. The Hindu understands that the BCCI marketing committee will invite bids for the broadcast rights of the two-match series which was a joint proposal by the BCCI and West Indies Cricket Board.