Srinivasan's re-election will be doomsday for Indian cricket: Lalit Modi

PTI

NEW DELHI: Former IPL chairman Lalit Modi was his usual outspoken self when he said it will be a "doomsday" for the Indian cricket if N Srinivasan gets re-elected as BCCI president at the board's AGM on September 29.

"Across the globe, the fans, advertisers and administrators will be disappointed at this if Srinivasan gets re-elected. A wrong message would be sent. It will be a doomsday for Indian cricket," said Modi.

Srinivasan has declared that he will contest for the top post in the upcoming Board elections in Chennai.

Srinivasan is bidding to get re-elected as BCCI president for the third year running under the Board's two plus one year tenure rule, having completed two years at the helm.

Srinivasan has been under a lot of pressure since the spot-fixing scandal broke out and his son-in-law and Chennai Super Kings team official Gurunath Meiyappan's name cropped up in investigations into betting during the Indian Premier League's sixth season held in April-May.The Tamil Nadu Cricket Association's president stepped aside in June as the BCCI chief and let former president Jagmohan Dalmiya take over the day-to-day work. However, he chaired the meeting of the disciplinary committee held in Delhi earlier this month that imposed life bans on cricketers S Sreesanth and Ankeet Chavan following a probe by BCCI's anti-corruption and security unit chief Ravi Sawani for indulging in spot-fixing in IPL6.

Modi said Srinivasan must quit if he has any sense of morality. "Issue of morality is key here. The game of cricket in India is more than religion, it cuts across all sections of the society and reverred and followed passionately. I am sad to see this. Only way to get rid of this menace is joining hands of both fans and media," he told 'Times Now'.

Modi recently got a big relief from a Delhi court, which has restrained the BCCI from holding its special general meeting (SGM) on September 25 to consider the report of the disciplinary committee on him for alleged financial irregularities in running of the cricket league.

Modi said he was surprised to see South Zone associations lobbying for BCCI president, most of whose members are staunch Srinivasan loyalists.

"The credibility of Indian cricket is at stake. The world is watching us and I am really surprised to see that all my colleagues of South of India have chosen to ignore the call of all the fans and cricketers around the country and world. They still support somebody who is tainted," he added.