By Ian Omoro
The 31-year-old Shah was appointed BCCI secretary in 2019, assuming what is perhaps the most influential position in all of cricket, not just in India. Shah’s elevation was subtle yet noteworthy, whereas Sourav Ganguly’s selection as BCCI president grabbed media attention at the time. After a turbulent period marked by a lot of back and forth between the Supreme Court and the Committee of Administrators, a new regime was taking over BCCI. Shah was re-elected without opposition in 2022, and Ganguly was replaced by Roger Binny.
With no intention of stepping down before then, Jay Shah will hold the position of BCCI secretary till the end of November. The purpose of Wednesday’s meeting of the BCCI Apex Council is to discuss several operational-related problems. This meeting’s agenda does not, however, include the appointment of a new secretary to succeed departing Jay Shah.
Five days remain until the board’s 93rd Annual General Meeting in Bengaluru, and this will be the last apex council meeting before it. Jay Shah has been unanimously elected as the next chairman of the ICC, necessitating the nomination of a new secretary. He will not, however, resign from his position as BCCI Secretary during the next AGM because he will only take up his new role on December 1.
The appointment process for a new secretary is not one of the eight topics on the agenda for the apex council meeting. An update on the situation regarding Byju, the previous title sponsor of the BCCI, is one of the subjects on the agenda. In March of last year, Byju’s, a Bengaluru-based ed-tech company that Byju Raveendran co-founded, ended its sponsorship agreement with the BCCI. The matter under dispute concerns outstanding balances owed from October 2022 to March 2023, even though payments were received until September 2022.
The newly opened National Cricket Academy on the outskirts of Bengaluru will also be discussed during the meeting. As it has been for more than 20 years, the NCA is currently housed on the grounds of the M Chinnaswamy stadium. Approved items on the agenda include the North East development project and the start of exterior renovations at the BCCI headquarters in Mumbai.
