Board of Control for Cricket in India Special General Meeting on Justice Lodha Report: Five Things to Know

The Board of Control for Cricket in India will be a bit nervous as they hold a Special General Meeting to discuss the recommendations of the Justice Lodha panel report. (Justice Lodha Report: Top 10 Developments)

The backdrop to this meeting came after the Supreme Court told the BCCI to fall in line with the recommendations of the Lodha Panel report. Justice TS Thakur had remarked, "Your members have been wielding power for long... There will be no second innings here." (BCCI Gear Up to Discuss Lodha Panel Report)

Here are the top five recommendations of the Lodha Panel report on the BCCI which will be discussed by the Board in the Special General Meeting.

1. One State, One Association: One Association of each state will be a full member and will have the right to vote. Currently, Gujarat and Maharashtra have three state cricket associations. Relegation of teams like Railways, Services and Universities as Associate members is also part of this recommendation. This will be a major issue in the meeting as this could result in overhauling the entire structure of the BCCI.

2. Eligibility criterias for BCCI office bearers: Lodha Panel has stated they must not be a minister or government servant and they must have not held office in the BCCI for a period of nine years or three terms. The Lodha committee also stated that no BCCI office-bearer can have more than two consecutive terms and that their age must not be above 70 years. There could be some opposition to the move, but it is expected to be agreed upon in the SGM

3. BCCI under RTI: The panel has recommended that BCCI should come under the purview of the Right to Information (RTI) Act. However, according to a report in Times of India, there is a fear in certain sections that if BCCI has to be deregistered from under the Tamil Nadu Society Act into a potential national body, what happens to the board's coffers

4. Establishment of a Players Association: Historically, the idea of forming players' association have been opposed vehemently by BCCI. In 1989 and 2002, Kapil Dev-led Association of Indian Cricketers and late Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi-led Indian Cricket Players' Association (ICPA) was formed, but the BCCI saw to it that they fizzled out. In the case of ICPA, the then BCCI President Jagmohan Dalmiya had attended the inaugural dinner but the working committee refused to give official recognition to the body.

5. Ethics Officer For Conflict of Interest Issue: BCCI President Shashank Manohar announced in October that the BCCI would appoint an ombudsman to deal with contentious issues like conflict of interest, as part of a clean-up operation. Manohar has shown that he is dedicated to reforms and this is one recommendation that the BCCI might agree.