Shashank Manohar only candidate for BCCI president : Anurag Thakur

New Delhi, September 29 -  Former president Shashank Manohar is the sole candidate for the top post of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), which has fallen vacant after the demise of Jagmohan Dalmiya, its secretary, Anurag Thakur, said here on Tuesday.

Thakur also said BCCI has called a Special General Meeting (SGM) in Mumbai on October 4 at 2 p.m. where a decision regarding the vacant chair will be taken adding scrutiny of the nominations will be done a day ahead of the meeting.

The BCCI chief's chair has been lying vacant since Dalmiya died in Kolkata on September 20. As per BCCI's constitution, a notification for a SGM to nominate a successor has to be issued within 15 days of the incumbent's death.

Manohar, a lawyer by profession, earlier held the post from 2008 to 2011.

"Shashank Manohar is the only candidate for the BCCI president's post. A decision regarding it will be taken in BCCI's SGM in Mumbai on October 4," Thakur said.

Thakur made this announcement during an innings' break while witnessing the India A vs South Africans T20 practice match being played here.

Manohar emerged as a consensus candidate among East Zone units whose turn it is to nominate a president till 2017. Any candidate for the BCCI top job will need a proposer from the eastern region.

It was earlier believed the Tripura Cricket Association or National Cricket Club will propose Manohar's candidature. But it is now believed former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly, who succeeded Dalmiya as the new Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) president, is likely to propose Manohar's name for the post.

Manohar is known to be close to former BCCI and International Cricket Council (ICC) chief Sharad Pawar. The senior lawyer has Pawar's backing and after Indian Premier League (IPL) chief Rajiv Shukla opted out of the race, he is likely to be supported by Anurag Thakur as well.

Jharkhand Cricket Association (JCA) chief Amitabh Choudhary had emerged as a possible candidate earlier, but his chances slimmed considerably as the Sharad Pawar and Anurag Thakur factions wanted their man at the top.

Manohar is unlikely to face any rival since the faction led by ex-BCCI chief N. Srinivasan doesn't have the majority among 29 votes to counter the former's candidature.

Srinivasan's eligibility to attend BCCI meetings will be heard by the Supreme Court on October 5. Thakur said Srinivasan is ineligible to attend the meeting but he can cast his vote at the SGM in the scenario of an election.

Srinivasan was present at BCCI's working committee meeting on August 26 in Kolkata in his capacity as chief of the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA).

But it led to a controversy as the Supreme Court said earlier this year that he risked being in contempt of court by attending BCCI meetings.

(IANS)