Vadodara court dismisses Sanjay Patel plea on BCA fiasco

Vadodara: The Vadodara Civil Court on Wednesday dismissed BCCI secretary Sanjay Patel's plea of allowing him to continue as the member of the managing committee of Baroda Cricket Association.

Patel was removed from the managing committee of BCA and the Baroda businessman had moved to city civil court challenging his removal. "Judge Sanjay Thakkar in his judgement stated that this court has no jurisdiction to try his (Patel) case. After getting permission from the concerned authority of public charity trust, Patel can move to the district sessions court in this regard," Prakash Thakkar, legal counsel of BCA told PTI today.

Justice Sanjay Thakkar, who gave the verdict today is currently Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) first-class but since the petition was first filed in city civil court under his jurisdiction, the higher court allowed him to give his judgement in this case. "Justice Thakkar also dismissed Patel's plea for a stay order," BCA legal counsel added.
"I will file separate appeals in two different courts," BCCI secretary told PTI today.

Patel said that the decision to remove him was taken without the managing committee BCA chairman Samarjeetsinh Gaekwad. "How can any decision be taken in his absence?" he questioned.

"I continue to be BCCI secretary and will challenge the judgement of local court in higher court after getting the copy of the order and studying it carefully," Patel said. Patel also alleged that former president of BCA Chirayu Amin, secretary Anshuman Gaekwad, vice-president Dr Jitendra Patel (Pop) and two others were allowed to hold offices, when they were not supposed to as per BCCI constituition.

Regarding his continuation as BCCI secretary, Patel said, "I have been proposed and seconded by two members of the BCCI. It does not have anything to do with the BCA managing committee. In any case, I am still legally a member of it," Patel asserted.

Besides Patel, who was an honorary secretary at BCA, three other members of the managing committee were also shown the door, former India opener Anshuman Gaekwad said. 

"A notice in regard to remove Patel and three others from the managing committee were served to them on April 28 last," Gaekwad said. The three other members receiving notices included Hemant Chokshi, Dr Anandrao Patel and advocate Kaushik Bhatt.

In his notice, Gaekwad had said,"You were removed from the managing committee because you were illegally co-opted in the managing committee, which had violated the constitution and rules of BCA." 

"The decision to remove all the four members was taken in the meeting of managing committee of BCA," Gaekwad had said in notice served to the four co-opted members including Patel. Senior BCA official Gaekwad had asserted,"The managing committee has the powers to remove illegally appointed members. So we issued notice to all the four members informing them about their removal from the managing committee".