MS Shanker
As the CID probe into the Hyderabad Cricket Association’s (HCA) murky financial irregularities and IPL ticket scam deepens, fresh revelations have emerged about the questionable election of the current Joint Secretary, Basavaraju.
Documents accessed by this digital paper show that Basavaraju contested and won the HCA election while simultaneously figuring in the records of two different cricket clubs—a direct violation of electoral norms and the conflict-of-interest clause mandated under the Justice Lodha Committee reforms.
Even after retiring from the Commercial Tax Department, Basavaraju’s name continued to appear in the Commercial Tax Department Cricket Club’s records as late as 2024. At the same time, he was elevated as Vice President of the Ameerpet Cricket Club, controlled by HCA’s present Acting President, Sardar Daljit Singh. It was on the strength of this affiliation that he entered the last HCA polls.
How such a glaring irregularity was overlooked remains a mystery—especially since the elections were held under the supervision of a Supreme Court-appointed one-man panel led by Justice Lavu Nageswara Rao. Justice Rao, after suspending 57 clubs for electoral violations, categorically empowered Electoral Officer Sampath Kumar to suspend any additional clubs subsequently found in breach of the conflict-of-interest clause. Yet, both Daljit Singh’s clubs and Basavaraju’s dual membership inexplicably escaped scrutiny.
It is an open secret within Hyderabad cricket that Khalsa Cricket Club and Ameerpet Cricket Club remain under Daljit Singh’s influence. His proximity to Basavaraju ensured they remained in the same faction, aligned with two former Hyderabad cricket stalwarts who eventually wrested control of the HCA.
Before the IPL ticket scam erupted, Secretary Devraj Ramchander had entrusted Basavaraju with overseeing league operations. The Vigilance Department later unearthed prima facie evidence of large-scale irregularities in ticket distribution for IPL matches at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, home of Sunrisers Hyderabad, since the Deccan Chargers’ exit. Acting on this report, Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy handed the case to the CID. The agency subsequently arrested HCA President Jaganmohan Rao, Secretary Devraj Ramchander, Treasurer Srinivas, and a club secretary and his wife, who had allegedly enabled Rao’s election by a single vote.
Meanwhile, a written complaint was filed against Joint Secretary Basavaraju by a club secretary, Chitti Sridhar, supported by former HCA Secretary Shesh Narayan. The complaint alleged that Basavaraju misrepresented his eligibility by projecting himself as a representative of Ameerpet Cricket Club while his name continued to exist as Secretary of the Commercial Tax Department Cricket Club. Copies of official letterheads of both clubs were circulated among HCA members, exposing the dual affiliation. The matter is now before the CID for investigation.
These revelations fall squarely under the ‘conflict of interest’ provisions of the Justice Lodha Committee, binding on the HCA. The crucial question now is how Justice Naveen Rao, who heads the High Court-appointed single-man supervisory committee, will respond. If enforced strictly, Basavaraju risks disqualification.
Meanwhile, it is reliably learnt that the arrested President Jaganmohan Rao has already secured bail. Following the principle that bail is the rule and jail the exception, it is likely that the Secretary and Treasurer may also obtain relief. However, the truncated Apex Council has already suspended all three officials in its last General Body meeting—a decision currently under challenge in the High Court.
It must be remembered that suspension by a sporting body cannot substitute for a judicial finding. Under Indian law, the presumption of innocence continues until guilt is established by a competent court. That legal tussle will decide not just the fate of these office-bearers, but the immediate future of HCA’s governance—still mired in controversy, factional battles, and judicial oversight.
