BCCI AGM boosts Jay Shah's succession plan; Dhumal, Dalmiya stay in IPL

During the 93rd BCCI Annual General Meeting in Bengaluru on Sunday, members urged current secretary Jay Shah to expedite the search for his successor to ensure a smooth transition. Shah is anticipated to resign in the last week of November to assume the role of ICC chairman for a three-year term starting December 1. Although selecting a new secretary was not officially on the AGM agenda, attendees reportedly discussed the succession plan informally to maintain transparency in the process.

“It was a normal request to keep all due process in place at the earliest as there will be clarity for us. Also, we have some big events like the IPL auction coming up, so it should not be like we will be handling everything at one go,” a state association representative who attended the AGM told PTI.

Currently, Rohan Jaitley (president of the Delhi and District Cricket Association), BCCI treasurer Ashish Shelar, joint secretary Devajit Saikia, and Gujarat Cricket Association secretary Anil Patel are the leading candidates to succeed Shah, unless an unexpected contender arises later in the selection process. While the AGM did not include a secretary election, the main focus was on nominating two representatives from India for ICC meetings.

Shah currently serves as BCCI's representative on the ICC Board, while IPL chairman Arun Dhumal is part of the Chief Executives' Committee. The AGM tasked the general body members with promptly recommending two candidates for the positions of director and alternate director, as the ICC has a conclave scheduled in Dubai immediately following the upcoming women’s T20 World Cup final.

As reported by PTI on Saturday, Arun Singh Dhumal and Avishek Dalmiya were elected as general body representatives on the IPL Governing Council, with Dhumal expected to remain chairman of the league until at least IPL 2025. Additionally, former Andhra cricketer V. Chamundeswarnath was nominated by the Indian Cricketers Association (ICA) as a player representative and joined the IPL Governing Council. 

"The members of the general body also appreciated the efforts of the office bearers for the work undertaken with respect to the new National Cricket Academy campus, dubbed as the Centre of Excellence near the Bengaluru International Airport," said the BCCI in a release.    

In this context, the AGM included a 17-minute tribute video celebrating Shah's significant contributions to Indian cricket as the board's secretary. VVS Laxman, head of the Centre of Excellence, also praised Shah for his visionary efforts in bringing the project to fruition.

“One person I would definitely want to single out is Jay because I have seen and I have been part of various meetings when he came here, interacted with the L&T (construction) team.

“The kind of timelines, the kind of deadlines he has put on them, and almost while empowering them, he made sure that all of them followed the timelines,” Laxman told a select gathering here on Sunday at the Centre of Excellence, which was inaugurated on Saturday in a closed-door ceremony.

Other than that the AGM ratified the annual budget for the 2024-25 season and the members unanimously resolved to maintain BCCI’s legal status as a society, an item which was originally not in the agenda of the meeting.

"The members further resolved that the tournaments of the BCCI, including the IPL, shall not be converted into a company," the statement added.