IPL scandal: No reason why I should be removed as BCCI president, N. Srinivasan tells Supreme Court

Suspended Board of Control for Cricket in India president N. Srinivasan has filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court on Tuesday asking why he has been removed as the Board president. In the wake of the Indian Premier League match-fixing and betting scandal 2013, the Supreme Court, through an interim order on March 28, removed Srinivasan as BCCI chief and appointed Shivlal Yadav and Sunil Gavaskar as joint heads.

In his petition, Srinivasan has requested the apex court to consider its interim order. "I am highly aggrieved by the unfair and unsubstantiated allegations made against me in the course of hearing of the above matter on 27-03-2014. Further, I am personally not aware of the reason why this Hon'ble Court orally expressed that I should not continue as President of BCCI," Srinivasan said in his affidavit. (Also read: Fleming admits 'distractions' affecting CSK)

The IPL case comes up for hearing on Wednesday, the same day the IPL starts in Abu Dhabi. (Check the full IPL schedule here)

In his reply filed in the Supreme Court, Srinivasan says: "I humbly request this Hon'ble court to reconsider the interim order passed 28.3.2014 in so far as it relates to my elected office. My term ends with Sept 2014 and I should be allowed to complete my tenure."

Srinivasan added that vested interests were behind the petitioner (Aditya Verma of Cricket Association of Bihar). Alleging that Verma was hand-in-glove with ex-BCCI president AC Muthiah, Srinivasan also defended himself for representing BCCI at last week's ICC Board meeting in Dubai saying: "Even though this Hon'ble Court clearly observed orally as informed to me by counsel that the interim order is restricted to only BCCI activities, a hue and cry was made by vested interests who have been vocal in the media that I should not represent BCCI in the ICC." (Also read: Srinivasan has hijacked BCCI, says Aditya Verma)

The embattled Srinivasan said he was not under "any inquiry or probe and hence no reason for me to be kept away from my office." He also said there was no provision for an interim president according to the Board constitution.

Srinivasan has also slammed suspended IPS officer G. Sampath Kumar's for making unsubstantiated allegations against him. Sampath Kumar, who first investigated the IPL scam as part of Tamil Nadu police's intelligence division, has also filed a petition in the Supreme Court alleging how powerful people were trying to cover-up the betting and match-fixing scam. Srinivasan wants the Supreme Court to direct the Tamil Nadu government to probe Sampath Kumar and state the reasons for his transfer and suspension.

Srinivasan's son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan has been indicted by a Supreme Court-appointed probe committee for betting and sharing team information. The probe report also confirmed Meiyappan as a Chennai Super Kings official. Srinivasan says in his application that he never mentioned to the probe panel, headed by former judge Justice Mukul Mudgal, that Meiyappan was a "mere cricket enthusiast."

Challenging yet another Supreme Court interim order, Srinivasan said it was unfair to ask employees of India Cements to quit their positions in the Board. The BCCI had to remove five India Cements employees after the top court saw an element of "conflict of interest." All five employees occupied important positions in the Board, including finance and administration. Srinivasan is the Managing Director of India Cements, the company that owns CSK.

"Recommending known resource has been the practice in BCCI and singling me out as though I have committed a grave indulgence for my personal benefits without an iota of proof is very unfair," Srinivasan said in his affidavit, adding that Lalit Modi, the banned former IPL commissioner, and former BCCI president Sharad Pawar, also employed "known" resources for BCCI activities. Srinivasan also said he had no control over IPL Chief Operating Officer Sundar Raman.