Brawl in U-19 camp, fledgling sports committee announces hunger strike

The Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) had declared Monday as an off day out of respect for Jagmohan Dalmiya, the BCCI president who had passed away on Sunday night. Then there were heavy rains that lashed the city in the evening, so much so that the traffic at ITO bridge was chock-a-block and going anywhere near the Ferozeshah Kotla would have meant testing your patience. But then these days DDCA is so abuzz with activities and happenings, there is so much of unpredictability, so much at stake that even Monday had officials strolling around, picking up fights and having animated discussions.

The morning had gone off well, with the Ranji squad observing 2-minute silence in Dalmiya’s memory. Then skipper Gautam Gambhir and new coach Ajay Jadeja seemingly struck off well, despite the apparent differences. The selectors, Vinay Lamba, Rahul Sanghvi and Hari Gidwani were there. All of these guys obviously left all the differences and shenanigans to the officials.

The evening, with the Under-19 camp, however came with a rush of blood. Naresh Sharma ‘Tappu’, member of the sports working committee and an aide of Vinod Tihara, rammed into Nikhil Chopra, Sunil Valson and Suresh Luthra, the three junior selectors appointed by the executive committee. This was just a trailor of what is yet to come due to the fight between the sports committee and the executive, and it looked pretty ugly while it lasted. There were well over 100-125 kids even though the selectors had given a list of 78 kids. So many kids meant that kids from Anil Jain’s list of U-19 probables had also walked in. To give you a clear picture, Anil Jain is allied to the sports committee and Tihara. They wanted to push their kids too. The selectors somehow warded off Tappu & Co but so many kids turned it into a fish market, says Pramod Sood, a DDCA member.

Tappu says that they had just requested the selectors to keep two kids each from all clubs in addition to their 78 and give everyone a fair chance. Well, these many more kids would have certainly turned it into a bigger fish market.

And by evening, a press release from Padam Chauhan, a sports working committee member and a sidekick of Tihara, threatened a ‘relay hunger strike’ on September 23. They’ll start the strike at 8 am. Well, honestly it is a pretty lovely proposition – you stay hungry taking turns. First you, then him, then him and it goes on and on. We are pretty sure that some of them must be diabetic and they can’t stay hungry for too long. Hence the relay strike.

Anyway, the seeds of this agitation and quarrel were laid on Sunday itself in a sports committee meeting. The Tihara group had said they’d pick their own set of selectors disregarding the decision taken by the executive committee. “We’ll try to accommodate those appointed by the executive committee too,” Tihara said rather generously. “It is our right to appoint selectors and run cricket not theirs.”

These guys are sticking to their guns even if time seems to be running out. However, in what came as a shock to them, their opposition in the committee, the four guys belonging to CK Khanna-Manchanda-Chetan Chauhan group, don’t seem to be that keen on it. Even after being offered an option to suggest two names each for what could be five-member selection panels in each of the age groups, they issued a press release saying that they are firmly behind the two selection panels, senior and junior, appointed by the executive committee.

The differences may not have arisen had Tihara & Co promised to also give them a proportional representation in the support staff which they had demanded in Sunday’s meeting. Once the promise wasn’t made and the the talk was simply done in thin air, the four issued the press release announcing their decision to back the executive committee. Tihara, used to having his own way with full majority in previous years, is finding it tough now with these four members of the opposition in the panel. Hence, the decision to go on a hunger strike on Wednesday.  

The sports committee had on Sunday planned to meet today, Tuesday (22^nd September) at 11 am to take their fight further and announce their selection panel and importantly bring Vijay Dahiya as coach. Going by what looked like their struggle in the U-19 camp on Monday, they seem to have dropped their shoulders and are taking it forward in agitational style like Aam Aadmi Party. Wonder what new thing will be announced in Tuesday’s meeting and will their four opponents agree to it.

By the way, there is also a finance committee meeting today to discuss a way to re-open the Central Bank account where 6-7 crore rupees is frozen. This is to ensure that cricket is brought back into play and the South Africa Test match is held in Delhi as on schedule.