HCA plans decisive move to end Azhar role: special general meeting today

HYDERABAD: The Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) on Saturday appeared to move ahead with the process of appointing an Ombudsman. It has called for a meeting of all its members for a special general meeting on Sunday morning.

The appointment would put an end to any control over the association that is claimed by Md Azharuddin who the HCA said “falsely claims himself as president, despite the expiry of the Apex Council’s term on September 26, 2022.”

In a strongly worded note circulated to all its members, the HCA practically accused Azharuddin of sabotaging Sunday’s meeting by sending messages on the HCA Official SMS group to the members. It declared that the former captain of the Indian cricket team had no authority to take any decision with regard to the association’s functioning.

The HCA said that the meeting of the general body was required as approved by the Supreme Court, an Ombudsman was to be appointment to attend to any disputes between the members and the association. This means an Ombudsman must be appointed as early as possible after the election of the Apex Council by the general body.

“It is this background, we the members are compelled to hold a special general meeting which is legal,” the note said. The HCA, it said is “the supreme body, administration and running the game of Cricket is its responsibility and HCA members are its stakeholders. We all have to save our Association,” adding that the meeting will be held at the Rajiv Gandhi Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium, Uppal, at 9.30 am, on Sunday.

It said Justice (Retd.) Nissar Ahmed Kakru, former Chief Justice High Court of Andhra Pradesh, and Chairman of the Supervisory Committee, in his report had declared “in no uncertain terms that Mohd. Azharuddin is to be ‘referred hereinafter as Ex-President’.

It said that HCA members were aware that the Supreme Court in its August 22, 2022 order appointed a supervisory committee of four members, with clear directions that “all decisions of the Apex Council and the general body are to be placed before the supervisory committee for ratification.

Any decision, including financial decisions, taken by the Apex Council and the General Body from November 2019 are also to be placed before the supervisory committee for appropriate action after considering the rules of the association.”