Jaideep Bihani, the convener of the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA) Ad hoc committee, said the interim body did not have the range of influence to organise the Rajasthan Premier League (RPL) this year.
In March this year, the Rajasthan government dissolved the RCA executive body, headed by Vaibhav Gehlot, following complaints of alleged irregularities in the organisation. Following this, an ad hoc committee was formed, with Bihani, the treasurer of Sri Ganganagar District Cricket Association, and an MLA with the BJP, being made the convener.
The first edition of the Rajasthan Premier League (RPL) was held in 2023 and contested between six city-based franchise teams, with all games staged at Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur. But this year, the league was not organised amidst other states like Delhi, Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, and Pondicherry joining the bandwagon.
“We did not have the purview to hold the Rajasthan Premier League this year. The new elected body which will come post the elections, will be the ones who will organise it. But we are organising domestic cricket – like Ranji Trophy, U16, U19, U23 games and their respective team selections,” said Bihani in an exclusive conversation with IANS.
Quizzed about a lot of vendors from the league still being unpaid, Bihani said, “We will not pay the old disputed amount. We will only pay the salary of the workers and anything related to the upcoming domestic season tournaments. The payment will come from the BCCI and will go directly to the players and officials.”
“We will send their bank accounts details directly, and their match fees, plus TA and DA, will be directly going there. Earlier also, these irregularities were happening. The tournaments were held and many did not get paid, including the officials. The workers did not get paid for a long time. We gave them their salary. The money came from the BCCI and everyone got their salaries.”
Apart from Bihani, Pali DCA Secretary Dharmveer Singh Shekhawat, Bikaner DCA secretary Ratan Singh, Nagaur DCA President Dhananjay Singh Khimsar, Alwar DCA Secretary Pawan Goyal, and Jhunjhunu DCA Secretary Harishchandra Singh are other members in the Ad hoc committee.
Bihani also said fresh RCA elections will be held sometime from now. “The Ad hoc committee is working right now, and we will prepare to hold elections now. The Ad hoc Committee was formed for three months. After that, there was an extension of three months. So, we are preparing for the elections before another extension period comes in.”
Bihani further informed a police complaint had been lodged in Jaipur against three members of the previous RCA committee, which accuses them of involvement in multiple financial irregularities.
“We also got the independent audits done of the accounts and transactions which happened in the previous regime, which is worth 363 pages. An FIR has been registered against the misdeeds by the previous committee, based on what came out of that audit report.”
Rajasthan will begin its 2024/25 season via Elite Group B matches of the Ranji Trophy, where the two-time winners are placed alongside three former championship winners Vidarbha, Hyderabad and Gujarat, as well as Uttarakhand, Pondicherry, Himachal Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh.
Bihani signed off by saying a new coaching staff will be announced to take charge of Rajasthan teams across various categories and age-groups. “We have prepared a list of coaches and physios to be interviewed, following which they will be appointed. We have also taken the names of the players for various competitions. They will also have a trial, and performance-wise, they will be selected for the tournament.”
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