Goan rhapsody continues…..

The Pendse Commission of Enquiry indicted the Goa Cricket Association for selling tickets far in excess of the capacity of the stadium.* The then president of the association and other office bearers were arrested for forgery and other charges.

I was naturally concerned and determined to prevent   a repeat of the previous experience. To my horror, I learnt that the then president of the association was now the health minister of Goa and continued to head the cricket body. When we invited the office bearers of the association to discuss the proposed plans for the match with us, they were indifferent. When repeated requests fell on deaf ears, I decided to report the matter to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), the central body for cricket administration in India.

The match was still over six weeks away. I sent an email to the secretary of the BCCI explaining the situation. I reminded him of the earlier experience and requested that they direct the Goa Cricket Association to cooperate with us. The inquiry commission report indicting the office bearers was also attached to the email.

Within minutes of my sending the email, I received a phone call from the health minister’s office. His secretary informed me that the minister wanted to see me immediately. I realized in a flash that somehow the health minister had learnt of the email I had sent to the BCCI. He had found out that his mention in the email was not in complimentary terms. (I was to learn much later that the secretary of BCCI, on receiving the email, had promptly conveyed its contents to the board’s president. Our health minister, in his capacity as the president of the Goa Cricket Association, was an ardent supporter of the president of BCCI and had voted for him in closely contested elections. The president, therefore, was beholden to the health minister and had considered it his Duty to inform him about my email.)

To be continued……..