Election blues

Faisal Shariff

It was Federal Minister Manohar Joshi's last day as president of the Mumbai Cricket Association and he was having a 'field' day. The 67th Annual General Meeting of the association was held on the lush outfield of Wankhede stadium, with Joshi fielding questions from club members in the media's presence.

The media is always allowed entry to MCA AGMs, which forces one to ask: Why isn't the same procedure followed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India for their AGMs?

I was pondering over the query, with flashes of various BCCI AGMs I had covered, spending hours alongside fellow journos, loitering around venues, running through my head. Just then, I caught sight of former BCCI president P M Rungta, who must have attended more BCCI AGMs than my years of existence, walk out of the meeting.

"Sir," I asked, interrupting his march to the Vinoo Mankad gate, "will the media ever be allowed into BCCI AGMs?"

"Never ever, my boy," he answered affectionately, putting his arm over my shoulder. His huge framework was intimidating. I continued probing, nevertheless.

On request that he not be quoted, I, unfortunately, cannot print his exact words, when I asked 'why?' They were, however, to the effect that the media and irresponsibility are not strangers to each other.

I asked him to elaborate. He said: "You people will hear something, report the contrary. What is the point? There will be more confusion.

"I am surprised the MCA allows the media to attend its meetings."

So what was he trying to say? Maybe, he meant the MCA is an inane body to allow the "irresponsible media" attend its meetings or the irresponsibility factor is a red herring in the BCCI discourse.

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From the moment I walked past the Vinoo Mankad gate at Wankhede stadium, I could perceive the mood in the arena.

"Sahebala [Sharad Pawar] kon harwu shakta?" (Who can defeat saheb?), was the buzz all over the stadium.

The media was there in anticipation of an upset. For, the astute Maratha from Baramati, who had lost just a single election in his political career spanning three decades, victory was supposed to be just a formality.

"The real story will be if Pawar loses; then we will have a story on hand," a scribe pointed out.

That didn't happen. Pawar's victory, for quite a few, was a disappointment. The former Maharashtra chief minister had picked a battle big enough to matter but small enough to win.

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The AGM nevertheless had its share of drama, with some poignant questions being raised by members.

Like:
- Why are elections followed by the AGM? It should be the other way around. The AGM should be held first so that candidates can be exposed and issues discussed.

· No one bothers to reply to letters sent to the MCA. Why is there no accountability? Acknowledgement is due. It is highly unprofessional not to bother replying to clubs.

· Why is maidan cricket being ignored? Let us not forget that cricketers come from maidans.

· Why hasn't a single one-day international been awarded to Bombay in the past few seasons?

· Why are we all talking in English? Why don't we talk in Marathi?

· The resolution to pass the resolution to disallow any member of Garware Club House from participating in MCA elections is a knee-jerk reaction. What is the need to discuss it after Pawar's candidature?

· Why should we have cocktails followed by dinner printed on invitations? We are here to discuss sporting matters. Let's talk sports.

Outgoing president Joshi jocularly requested not to press for the resolution of the last query "that late in the evening", when everyone was keen on a drink.

"A special meeting will be called in the day to pass that resolution," he said, much to the amusement of the house.

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Amidst the jubilation of Pawar's victory stood a man with hands folded behind. Hands that were once the most trusted when on a cricket field; hands that were magnets, so to speak, to the red cherry. Eknath Solkar, one of India's greatest fielders, seemed disgusted with the state of affairs.

"Not a single cricketer who can challenge these politicians?" he asked with a melancholic tone.

"How can Milind Rege lose this election? He is progressive. Where have we come in all these years?" he quipped, standing in the dark alley of Prabhu Desai Hall. True, he stepped out of the limelight long ago.

Sharad Diwadkar, executive secretary of the BCCI, seemed distraught at the outcome of the polls.

"Out of 12 cricketers and umpires, just two have managed to make it to the committee. It's something to ponder about," he moaned.

PS: "Apparently, a democracy is a place where numerous elections are held at great cost without issues and with interchangeable candidates." -- Gore Vidal

Design: Devyani Chandwarkar