Talk of consensus candidate dismissed

Talk of fielding a consensus candidate for the BCCI president’s post by the two factions was rebutted by N. Srinivasan’s camp.

“The truth is they could not even find a name to nominate, forget seconding, from East Zone. Sharad Pawar wanted to contest himself. Mr. [Jagmohan] Dalmiya has always been our man,” a BCCI member told The Hindu .

After the annual general meeting of the Board here on Monday, Anurag Thakur, who was elected secretary, said the different factions of the BCCI should forget their differences and come together in the interest of the game in the country.

“The AGM is over now and we all would work together for the betterment of Indian cricket. There is so much that needs to be done for the game and its image,” he said.

Mr. Thakur is the lone member from the Pawar group on the list of office-bearers that includes the president, the treasurer, the joint secretary and the five vice-presidents.

In the BCCI, the president is the most powerful man, while the secretary executes the orders.

Although its candidate Sanjay Patel lost, Mr. Srinivasan’s camp was not entirely unhappy with Mr. Thakur’s elevation. “He has been with us before. He’s dynamic and has done some good work for the Board,” a member from Mr. Srinivasan’s group said.

Interestingly, Mr. Thakur had proposed Shivlal Yadav’s name as the AGM chairman.

Mr. Yadav said, “I am happy everything went off well. The reputation of the Board is very important to us.”

He added, “In all, there were 30 votes, including my vote as chairman. In the event of a tie, I had the casting vote.”

Kerala Cricket Association president T.C. Mathew, elected vice-president (West), said there was no rancour at the meeting. Brijesh Patel, secretary, Karnataka Cricket Association, said despite the close nature of the contests, frayed tempers were not in view.

No one could explain the three blank votes though.