Narayanaswami Srinivasan safe till the next AGM

It is understood that N Srinivasan is likely to remain as BCCI president till the next AGM in September 2013. After two days of several conspiracy theories in the media, all off-the-record briefings by BCCI officials and what Srinivasan himself dubbed as a “hounding by media”, he still retains the BCCI presidency, and in all likelihood will complete his minimum term of two years. His remarkable survival can be attributed to the combination of factors like BCCI’s internal politics, and the compulsion of Indian party politics.

Last evening, it was evident from his press conference that over the past two days, Srinivasan has gathered the numbers on his side, though his claim of “unity” in Kolkata was a bit of an exaggeration. He spoke with defiance and the swagger of a man who knows his future is certain. This highlights the fact that, unless he is involved directly in any of criminal activities investigated by Mumbai Police that further taints the BCCI’s image, the status quo will be maintained until the annual general meeting (AGM) scheduled to be held in the last week of September.

That, by itself, should not be misunderstood that there’s no opposition to Srinivasan. There are many officials in BCCI who are unhappy with Srinivasan’s defiance, but the problem is that their egos clash with each other and hence lack unity.

There are four to five major players who have controlled the opinion of the rest of the voting members. There are 31 members in all, including the incumbent president. And to oust Srinivasan, his opposition needs at least 2/3rd of the votes, which translates to around 24 votes. It is understood that none of those major players, including those who aspire to lead the BCCI in future (Arun Jaitely for example), are in a hurry to put an end to the current establishment; so the only outcome is that the status quo is set to prevail till September.

The major players who are involved are political heavyweights like Arun Jaitley, leader of the opposition in Rajya Sabha, president of the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA), and the hot favourite to replace Srinivasan as the next BCCI president. The next in line is Rajiv Shukla, the IPL chairman, who is also a junior minister for parliamentary affairs. Last but not the least, Sharad Pawar, though he is not the part of the BCCI anymore, remains the most influential person outside it. All three have their eye on the general elections scheduled for the next year. Obviously, no one would like to lose face in a high-profile, election of BCCI presidency before that.