Big fight: Azhar allegedly locked out club representatives from Uppal stadium

Hyderabad: Taking the one-upmanship in Hyderabad Cricket Association to a new low, outgoing president Md Azharuddin allegedly got the gates of the Uppal stadium locked on Sunday, forcing the representatives of clubs to hold a special general body meeting literally on the road outside the main gate.

The special general body meeting, which former president Shivlal Yadav claimed was attended by 172 out of 220 HCA-affiliated clubs, decided to elect a new apex committee as the incumbent body had completed its tenure in September.

Former Chief Election Commissioner V.S. Sampat, who acted as election officer in 2019, was urged to conduct the polls this time also. Polling will be held on January 10, said the participants of the meeting.

“We also urged the Board of Control for Cricket in India chief Roger Binny to swap the proposed first One-Day International with New Zealand on January 18 with the third ODI scheduled in Raipur on January 24,” Shivlal Yadav told Deccan Chronicle.

Referring to the stampede at the Gymkhana for tickets in September, the former cricketer said that some breathing time was sought for the new committee to conduct the match smoothly.

Despite an overwhelming support for cleansing the HCA and electing an apex committee in Sunday’s meeting, uncertainty prevailed over the special general body meeting, as well as polls, in the backdrop of Supreme Court-appointed Supervisory Committee holding the mandate to supervise and ratify every decision of the general body.

Quoting the latest High Court order, sources said that the very conduct of the special general body meeting should have had the approval of the Supervisory Committee, and that the police denied permission for Sunday’s meeting in the absence of approval. The apex court is considering the appointment of the returning officer, sources pointed out.

Sources said committee members were in favour of preparing new electoral rolls, roping in the district clubs headed by collectors and major urban local bodies before going to the polls. A majority of the members who backed the inclusion of new district clubs were in no mood to hold the polls in the near future, sources said.

Former HCA presidents G. Vinod Kumar, Arshad Ayub and outgoing secretary R. Vijayanand addressed the general body, which strongly condemned the alleged high-handed behaviour of Azharuddin. Representatives of clubs complained that it was an insult to the entire association.

They raised slogans stating that Azharuddin had no moral right to continue in the HCA. Some club representatives questioned how the Supervisory Committee appointed by the Supreme Court could be silent on the sorry state of affairs.