The High Court of Meghalaya has delivered its verdict in the months-long battle between two separate factions of the Meghalaya Cricket Association, with the judgement in favour of the President, James PK Sangma, who is also the state’s lone Rajya Sabha MP.
In summary (with the full story in our Sports section), the court found that Sangma’s suspension in June of Honorary Secretary Rayonald Kharkamni was legal and that the appointment of the Ombudsman would stand.
Interestingly, the court acknowledged that the Ombudsman’s appointment did not meet the letter of the law, in this case the MCA’s constitution but should still stand until confirmed at an annual general meeting.
That leaves the door open for a Kharkamni fight back but is by no means guaranteed. The AGM is usually held at the end of the calendar year, so it should be just a few weeks away.
At present it appears that Sangma does not have the support of a majority of district associations. Whether this has changed fundamentally or whether it will change now that the court has conclusively come down on his side in the ongoing dispute remains to be seen. If Sangma is willing to make peace with the districts that have gone against him they could very well think it prudent to abandon Kharkamni.
However, if they stick with him, then the districts may choose not to accept the Ombudsman, a retired judge, and instead appoint one of their own choosing.
Then there is the very real threat to Meghalaya’s cricketers themselves.
When the fight between Sangma and Kharkamni began we were in the off season. But the BCCI domestic season has well and truly begun now.
Both Sangma and the Apex Council held separate trials of players. It seems that a majority of districts sent their players to the Apex Council trials and it is its teams that have gone on to represent Meghalaya in the Ranji Trophy, women’s tournaments and U-23 men’s tournaments.
Now the High Court has ruled that the meeting in September that the Apex Council called to decide on a schedule of trials was itself invalid. This calls into question all the trials that were subsequently held and the players who were selected.
Months and months of hard work is in the balance. Players who might have thought their financial security was assured by playing for Meghalaya this year might now lose out.
This dispute in Meghalaya bears some similarity with what has been going on in Arunachal Pradesh. However, there district associations called into question the legality of elections to the state body and there were multiple factions all claiming to be the genuine Apex Council. This led to Arunachal forfeiting several matches and players issuing a public plea for the matter to be resolved so that they could get on with playing cricket and earning income for their families. Eventually the BCCI stepped in and state cricketers are now playing in the domestic tournaments, though the overarching Arunachal Pradesh Cricket Association dispute remains.
So far the BCCI has not involved itself in the MCA dispute, probably because of the court case. Now that that has been resolved it will be interesting to see how the national body acts. Kharkamni is said to be close to BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia. But with the court ruling against him and Sangma having deep political connections, the BCCI may see which way the wind is blowing.
At real risk are the players. Those from districts that went to the Apex Council trials may be left out in the cold. That would, of course, be a boon for the players who attended the Sangma trials. Overall, though, Meghalaya cricket has suffered greatly from this unseemly argument that erupted over one thing – the control of the MCA’s sizeable purse strings.
