*Time ripe to play game on ground rather than in Courts
Rajesh Dhar
JAMMU, July 30: The fractured and scam-ridden Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association (JKCA) is all set to streamline its cricket activities as the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI’s) approved Ombudsman has already taken charge of clearing the prevailing disputes in the affiliated Clubs of the Association.
Sources said that out of a total of 25 Cricket Clubs affiliated to Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association, the office bearers of around a dozen Clubs are at loggerheads at each other and claim ownership of these Clubs.
“Since the inception of JKCA, it has remained a custom that the office bearers of some Clubs have been changing in each working committee meeting, depending as to which members belong to a stronger faction. Many a time, it has been observed that different members represent a particular Club in Working Committees,” sources added.
Sources close to Central Secretariat of the Association said that the infighting within the members and the disputes in the Clubs have always been badly affecting the health and affairs of the Association, adding that after the clearance of the disputes of the Clubs probably in a month’s time by the BCCI’s Ombudsman, Iqbal Ansari who happens to be the retired Chief Justice of the Patna High Court, the time will be ripe to play the game on the playgrounds rather than in Courts. Otherwise, in the scheme of things in JKCA, the game is more played in the Courts rather than on the fields.
Sources further said that the introduction of the Ombudsman, as per the Supreme Court guidelines, will make it mandatory for the members to fight the cases in elitist Court of the country ‘Supreme Court’ rather than in High Courts or Lower Courts, which was an easier thing for all the members.
It has been learnt that there are around 50 cases related to JKCA and its affiliate units pending in various Courts of the State and the introduction of an Ombudsman will shut the doors for all these cases and to fight them the members have to knock the doors of the Supreme Court, which is not everybody’s cup of tea. So, it will be end of the road for the manipulators, who were always busy in filing suits for their petty interests.
According to the reliable sources, the Clubs with disputes in Jammu include International Cricket Club, Friends Cricket Club, Shastri Cricket Club, Rehari Cricket Club and not to talk of Jammu Cricket Club, while the Clubs with disputes in Kashmir include FCC Srinagar, WCC Srinagar UCC Srinagar, Baramulla Cricket Club, MCC Sopore and not to talk of Kashmir Gymkhana.
Though, there are reports about the disputes in few more Clubs, yet there is no certainty as to whether the reports are true or not.
Now, with the Association already in trauma since its scam unearthed early in 2011-12, the time is ripe to set the system right for the betterment of the game and especially its players, who have been the worst sufferers because of the jaundiced policies and system in JKCA.
Jammu and Kashmir possesses abundant cricketing talent and the dire need is to hone it to produce international stuff.
It is the opportune time to focus on talented cricket stars in the State and help them to make India A cuts and why to talk of Team India Selection.
Parvez Rasool has shown them the way and there are many more guys waiting in the wings to blossom at the highest level. Ian Dev Singh, Umar Nazir, Shubham Khajuria, Mehjoor Ali and Pranav Gupta are a few skillful cricketers to name.
With the season in sight, the need is to concentrate on preparing our both the available grounds in the State and make them ready for the bigger matches as the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is all set to change the pattern of holding Ranji Trophy matches in its Technical Committee Meeting to be held on August 2, 2017.
Sources said that the BCCI’s Technical Committee will be changing the previous year’s adopted pattern of holding the Ranji Trophy matches at the neutral venues as the model has been opposed by most of the Captains across the Country in their reports to the BCCI.
“The Technical Committee will again follow the age old pattern of organizing half of the matches at home and half at the rivals homes to give home advantage to the teams,” sources added.
For that matter, the first and foremost thing after the things are set right in JKCA should be to prepare the Sher-e-Kashmir Cricket Stadium in Srinagar and GGM Science College Hostel ground in Jammu for hosting good number of matches in the State, the custom which has been absent from last 3 years.
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