Nadkarni alleges conspiracy behind re-election disqualification
USA Cricket may find itself embroiled in a fresh legal tussle after a chastising letter addressed to the board and ICC was made public by 21 cosigners comprising league presidents, former and current board administrators.
The letter questions the legitimacy of Vincent Adam's induction as the Nominating and Governance Committee (NGC) chair and the subsequent blatant misgovernance and abuse of power from the committee thereafter. The letter further outlined the NGC's flimsy decisions including the 'unconstitutional' appointment of Patricia Whitaker as an independent director, disqualification of current board member and former captain Sushil Nadkarni from re-election and disenfranchisement of former cricketers from the male player director election.
The letter fires an opening salvo at the legitimacy of Adams' induction in the NGC citing his concurrent stint as an officer/consultant on the Cricket Committee of the board as a violation of the USAC Constitution section 9.5 (A), which bars an officer, director, employee, or a consultant of USA Cricket to be on the NGC.
Adams was inducted into the NGC by the BOD as soon as Atul Rai claimed the chairmanship of the board. The letter further reveals how Adams ratified the disqualification of noted administrators like Syed Shahnawaz, Ajith Bhasker (former Club director) and Sushil Nadkarni (current league director) on technical grounds such as a non-submission of a resume.
While Shahnawaz failed to submit his resume during the application process and Nadkarni provided a link to his LinkedIn page in lieu of his resume, it is learnt that the NGC disqualified Bhasker even after submission of his resume.
According to sources, Bhaskar applied to contest for the League Director's position initially with a resume but later requested to withdraw and contest for the individual director's position within the deadline. The NGC initially turned down his candidature citing there were 'better candidates' who had applied to run for the League director role. When Bhaskar asked further details on the same, the NGC sent him a disqualification email on the grounds of non-submission of a resume for the League Director's position.
"The previous NGC headed by Jagan Jagannathan used to work with candidates and bridge any real gaps that would exist in their application," Nadkarni said. "But what NGC is doing is unfair and petty while it does not serve the primary purpose of running a process to identify the best candidates to serve on the USA cricket board."
"Adams is there on the cricket committee with me, I know him and he knows me too, if he had a problem with me submitting my LinkedIn page as a form of resume, I was only an email or text away to resubmit it. They are disrespecting a former captain of the national team and making a mockery of the process," Nadkarni added.
The recommendation and subsequent appointment of Patricia Whitaker as an independent director casts serious doubts over the competency of the NGC as Whitaker does not qualify to be an independent director on the board owing to her involvement as a USAC selector as recent as 2021. The appointment stands in clear violation of USAC constitution section 7.5 (B) (c) (d), which prohibits individuals from contesting for the independent director if they have been involved in cricket with any capacity.
It is noteworthy that a media report just before the 2022 board elections in July (when Adams was not on the NGC) leaked an email of Adams where he expressed some choicest of words about the previous dispensation, calling their behavior 'dishonorable and unprincipled' and further stating that some board officials were a compromised lot who stayed silent for small perks. Ironically, things haven't stacked up too differently after Adam's charge and leaves a lot to be desired.
The disenfranchisement of vote for a few players from the upcoming male player director position is another serious allegation the letter invokes. It is understood that at least 8 players have been barred from voting in the player director election including the likes of Jannisar Khan, Mohammad Ghous and Yasir Mohammad.The letter also questions the legitimacy of Nisarg Patel as a member of the NGC citing violation USAC Constitution section 9.5 (A) as Patel is also a paid employee/contractor as a player.
The cosigners have threatened legal action against the board and demanded the NGC to be overhauled and roll back any past 'improper' actions. Already in extreme financial distress where employees and contractors have gone unpaid for months, withdrawal of a major sponsor in Sistar Mortgage this new legal tangle will only exacerbate the crisis for a board that failed to host their men's national championship in 2022 and inadequacy to deliver fresh contracts for 2023.
