To defreeze account, DDCA passes resolution to remove Sunil Dev as signatory

The Delhi and District Association (DDCA)’s executive committee (EC) this week decided to go ahead with an important resolution in its bid to defreeze its account in Central Bank of India and free up the R7 crore that is lying in it. The Central Bank had frozen the account after it emerged that the Sports Secretary, Sunil Dev had objected to the transfer of DDCA money to that account. The freezing of the account had put DDCA in a quandary and left it with no funds at all to pay the umpires, clubs and even ground fees.

However, the executive committee met on Tuesday and 14 of the 20 members, including one government nominee, present decided to approach the bank to defreeze the account and importantly remove Sunil Dev from the list of four signatories whose signs are necessary to reopen the account. There are 27 members in the executive committee. The lack of Dev’s signature had created the trouble.  The Bank had told DDCA to either get Dev’s signature or remove him from the list of signatories, which the DDCA have now done. The DDCA have replaced him with Anil Khanna, the same person who was removed from the post of general secretary during the SP Bansal scandal last December where R1.55 crore of DDCA was allegedly siphoned off.  The other three signatories are treasurer Ravindra Manchanda, vice-president Chetan Chauhan and club secretary Sunil Jain.

Interestingly, Sunil Jain was not even present at the emergent executive committee meeting although officials say that his sign is already there on bank statement and he is supportive of the need to defreeze the account. Among the others absent from the meeting were Sunil Dev, who sent a letter to EC and the bank citing his unavailability, forcing EC to remove him from the list of signatories. Salil Seth was also absent. Out of 20, while 14 signed for the resolution, 5 voted against and one Anil Jain abstained from it.

The executive committee will now present the resolution, in written form, to the bank within a day or two. Whether the bank agrees to open the account is yet to be seen.

Meanwhile, former India cricketer and World Cup winner Kirti Azad has written to vice-president Chetan Chauhan apparently questioning DDCA’s will to sort the issue. He has provided a copy of another resolution taken on December 9 where 14 directors decided to remove president SP Bansal and general secretary Anil Khanna on charges of illegal transfer of R1.55 crore of DDCA’s money. Azad says in his letter that having Anil Khanna as one of the signatories has washed away all his past sins.

Interestingly, despite that December resolution, Bansal remains president of the DDCA.  Some insiders say that Bansal-Dev-Tihara group had got work done and people like Bansal, Ravi Jain reinstated in their old positions in return of helping defreeze the Central Bank account. It however didn’t happen and the EC had to resort to a resolution.