RCA says it will attend SGM, claims BCCI ban doesn’t stand

The long suspended Rajasthan Cricket Association has claimed its suspension doesn’t stand anymore and is set to barge into the Indian cricket board’s Special General Meeting on Saturday.

In a letter marked to the BCCI secretary and the Lodha panel, RCA secretary Sumendra Tiwari stated that Mehmood M Abdi will be its representative at the SGM, which has been called to discussed the interim order passed by the Supreme Court with regards to the Lodha panel’s sweeping recommendations.

RCA was suspended in May 2014 and an ad-hoc body was put in place by the BCCI. This happened after Lalit Modi was elected as RCA president.

The state body was not allowed to attend the last SGM held on September 30 as well as the AGM that took place on September 21.

“RCA, being a full member of the BCCI is entitled to notice of the meetings and is also entitled to participate in the meetings,” said RCA secretary in the letter.

Tiwari said there was no legal basis for not calling RCA to meetings.

“By letter dated 6-5-2014, RCA was suspended from the BCCI, pending inquiry for six months and such inquiry was to be conducted in terms of Rule 32 (iv) of the BCCI rules and regulation by a disciplinary committee.

“The said rules were amended on 9-11-2015, however while carrying out such amendment no provision was made for continuation of the pending proceeding, consequently proceedings against RCA lapsed and could not have continued,” the letter stated further.

The RCA said its suspension cannot be continued under the current scenario.

“The position as it stands on Friday is that in the absence of a disciplinary proceedings a member of BCCI cannot be suspended and its suspension cannot be continued, therefore the RCA suspension has ceased to exist and stands revoked by efflux of time and subsequent developments,” it added.