Hyderabad: Former secretary and president of the Hyderabad Cricket Association — John Manoj and Arshad Ayub respectively — have been expelled from the cricket body on charges of corruption at the Annual General Meeting held on Sunday.
“They have been suspended on charges of corruption and mismanagement of funds. We are in possession of forensic audit and documentary evidence,” HCA secretary T. Shesh Narayan said, adding the Apex Council has also got a mandate from the General Body to keep checks on several issues concerning the Association.
“As many as 167 members (of the 211 affiliated clubs) attended the AGM that lasted about three hours.... the decision to take stringent action against the two officials was unanimous,” Shesh said.
“Large scale misappropriation of funds has been detected and we are in the process of cleaning the mess. Food bills have been exaggerated, Instances of officials’ spouses travelling to the USA on Association money have surfaced.”
“Also, travel tickets were booked for the team for a Ranji Trophy game in Kolkata, when there was no match at the venue,” Shesh said. Huge amounts have also been marked for annual maintenance of the LED screens at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium.
Contracts for Ranji Trophy players
The HCA also approved a contract system for men as well as women players. “Ten per cent of the revenue generated will be set aside for players’ salaries. We are the first cricket association in the country to implement this,” Shesh said.
“We will also come down heavily on those who are letting out club teams on hire. Anyone found guilty will be barred for six years. It has also been decided to appoint a retired IPS officer to monitor fraud. We pledge total transparency even in the selection of teams. Most deliberations and scrutiny will be available on the website,” Shesh said.
Shesh also said the HCA planned to rope in corporates and raise cricket development fund via them to improve the game in the districts.
