Anurag Thakur was unanimously elected as the BCCI’s new President, while Ajay Shirke was chosen as board secretary on Sunday, in a smooth change of guard for the world’s richest sporting body during its sail through choppy waters.
The 41-year-old Thakur replaced Shashank Manohar, who quit the position to take up the ICC chairman role. Also, Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) chief and business magnate Shirke expectedly filled in the secretary’s post which was left vacant by Thakur’s resignation on Saturday. Senior BCCI vice-president CK Khanna chaired the Special General Meeting (SGM) and announced Thakur’s name for the top job.
Manohar’s exit from the top post barely seven months into his tenure had necessitated the election of the new chief for the BCCI.
Thakur, who resigned as BCCI secretary, got the signatures of all six East Zone units in his presidential nomination form on Saturday, thus paving way for his unanimous choice as the 34th President of the sporting entity.
In a show of solidarity, all the six east units – Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB), Assam CA, Tripura CA, NCC and Jharkhand SCA – had signed Thakur’s nomination papers even though the rules required only one unit to nominate the name of the presidential candidate. It was the East Zone’s turn this time.
Shirke, who was top-contender for the post, has also been unanimously appointed as the secretary of the Board.
Thakur, who is BJP’s MP from Hamirpur (Himachal Pradesh), will be taking over the reins of the embattled BCCI in rather tough times. It may be remembered that the BCCI is facing heat from the Supreme Court (SC) to implement the Lodha Committee’s recommendations for sweeping reforms.
