BCB set for controversial elections

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) is heading towards a controversial election for board of directors after 16 councillors, including former national captain Tamim Iqbal, withdrew their nominations on Wednesday, alleging government interference.

The election environment, which has been fraught with war of words and writ petitions for the last one month, came to a head when former BCB president Faruque Ahmed filed a writ petition on Tuesday, challenging the inclusion of 15 clubs which were under observation by Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC). The High Court issued a stay order on their councillorship on Tuesday, six days before the polls, scheduled for October 6.

The EC yesterday announced the final list of 33 candidates for 25 directors' posts -- 12 from Dhaka clubs, 10 from districts and divisional sports bodies, one from universities, sports institutions and players' association. The National Sports Council (NSC) will nominate two more directors from the councillors of all three categories.

While withdrawing his candidature, Tamim claimed that many councillors did not want to be part of such an environment anymore.

"It's a way of our protest since we don't want to be any part in this filth," Tamim told reporters at BCB's Election Commissioner's office in Mirpur.

"Today cricket has 100 percent lost; there is no doubt about it. You talk loudly about needing to stop fixing in Bangladesh cricket; first stop the election fixing, then we can think about stopping cricket fixing....This election has become a black spot for the BCB," he added.

BCB had previously decided to allow the 15 clubs to participate given the fact that there was no conviction against those clubs, leaving the issue to the jurisdiction of the EC, which initially dropped the councillors from the 15 clubs from the draft voter list, pending an appeal. Following the appeal, the EC allowed them to participate before Faruque's writ petition left the clubs' fate hanging.

The last-minute suspension of 15 councillors had apparently left Tamim disappointed as he was banking on those votes in the battle for 12 directors' positions from the Dhaka club category.

Tamim had been critical of the way the councillors were being nominated from districts and divisional categories.

The former Bangladesh skipper had previously blamed the incumbent BCB president Aminul Islam Bulbul of influencing nomination from the district and divisional sports associations after Aminul sent a letter on September 18 to the Ministry of Youth and Sports, asking to send councillors' names from the ad-hoc committees.

Four individuals, who were denied councillorship, had filed a writ petition on September 22, challenging Aminul's letter and the HC bench ordered a stay for 15 days on the operation of the letter. However, following a petition filed by the Ministry of Youth and Sports challenging the HC order, the Supreme Court chamber judge stayed the HC order.

NSC, governing body of the country's sports, had dissolved the committees of all district and divisional sports associations and formed ad-hoc committees following the fall of the Awami League government on August 5, 2024.

The NSC had used its quota of two nominated directors to bring in Faruque and Nazmul Abedeen Fahim, which set the first precedent of government interference.

The NSC also brought in Bulbul following the same mechanism and instated him as a director, paving the way for the former captain to replace Faruque at the hot seat of the most financially solvent sporting body of the country.

Israfil Khosru, another councillor from Axiom Cricketers who withdrew his nomination, also alleged that a certain section of the government had interfered.

"There is blatant interference going on in the BCB elections. There is no election environment here…A certain group within the government is interfering here. For now, that's all I can say. Very soon we will hold a press conference and reveal everything in detail," Israfil said yesterday.

There have been allegations from several councillors that government brought in their own people in the ad-hoc committee and eventually nominated their chosen councillors for the directors' elections.

Meanwhile, Lutfor Rahman Badal, another BCB councillor from a Dhaka-based club, felt that Tamim and others stepped away fearing defeat in the elections.

"As a candidate I feel that they made their calculations and came to the conclusion that they would lose," Badal told The Daily Star.