Special Correspondent
For Telangana cricket, despair is fast turning into anger. What began as cautious optimism with the appointment of a Telangana High Court–appointed One-man Supervisory Committee at the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) is now giving way to a far more disturbing sentiment — that inaction may be enabling the very rot the office was meant to cure.
Disappointed cricket lovers, anxious parents of promising youngsters, and even former and present HCA office-bearers — many of whom had already lost faith after the Supreme Court–appointed Committee failed to bring lasting reform — are now openly questioning whether institutional accountability exists at all. Their concern is stark: repeated complaints, supported by documents, are allegedly going unanswered, while what they describe as entrenched malpractice continues unchecked.
The allegations are not trivial. They range from “pay-to-play” brokers operating discreetly, to selection irregularities involving age fraud and alleged score-sheet manipulation — issues that, sources insist, affect not just men’s cricket but women’s teams as well. The already truncated Apex Council of HCA and its selectors are accused by stakeholders of brazenly disregarding norms, deepening the trust deficit within the system.
TCA Steps in with a Sharper Missive
Into this simmering crisis steps the Telangana Cricket Association (TCA), which has now sent a pointed representation to the HCA’s one-man Supervisory Committee headed by Justice Naveen Rao, urging immediate intervention. TCA’s grievance is not new; however, its latest letter—backed by court orders, BCCI communications, and documentary evidence—significantly raises the stakes.
TCA has long accused HCA of ignoring even explicit advice and directions from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), particularly on recognising TCA and working in tandem to promote cricket across the entire state of Telangana. According to TCA, HCA’s functioning has remained confined to the limits of Greater Hyderabad, systematically excluding rural talent and denying aspiring cricketers across districts a fair pathway to state representation.
This grievance carries legal weight. TCA points out that it has fought prolonged legal battles for affiliation and recognition, securing directions from the Supreme Court and multiple High Courts, including the Bombay High Court, asking BCCI to consider its case — especially after the bifurcation of the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh state. TCA contends that instead of reform, the post-bifurcation years have seen an explosion of irregularities and alleged scams within HCA, coinciding with a steady erosion of Hyderabad cricket’s once-proud legacy.
Alleged Conflicts and a Controversial Tournament
At the heart of the current controversy is the proposed G. Venkata Swamy Memorial Inter-District T20 League, which TCA argues is riddled with violations of BCCI rules, constitutional norms, and conflict-of-interest provisions.
In his letter to the Ombudsman, TCA founder-secretary Dharam Guruva Reddy raises multiple red flags. He alleges that HCA is violating specific BCCI rules (cited in the annexures) and has failed to comply with the BCCI order dated 11 July 2021, as well as the Bombay High Court order dated 21 March 2025, both of which remain binding.
TCA recalls that in 2018, HCA attempted to similarly tag the same memorial tournament as its “official” inter-district league — an attempt that, according to TCA, was not approved by the BCCI and failed to serve the regulatory objectives expected of a recognised state association.
More critically, TCA invokes BCCI Rule 38, which addresses conflicts of interest, and applies it to three distinct contexts.
First, the tournament is named after late G. Venkata Swamy, the father of former HCA presidents and current members G. Vivekanand and G. Vinod, raising questions about propriety and governance.
Second, TCA points to an ongoing arbitration dispute involving Vishaka Industries, in which the Telangana High Court reportedly directed HCA to pay approximately ₹67 crore, including penalties. During the period when this dispute arose, G. Vivekanand was a director and managing director of Vishaka Industries. TCA notes that HCA funds were allegedly frozen to the tune of the same amount, and that the payment remains pending.
Adding to the gravity is the fact that HCA officials have recently been arrested by the CID, accounts seized, and restrictions imposed on financial operations due to multiple pending criminal matters before courts and agencies such as the ACB, ED and CID — as cited in the CID remand report attached to the complaint. TCA questions how, amid such constraints and alleged violations, HCA could proceed with organising an inter-district league — and that too with sponsorship allegedly proposed by the same family or group, which TCA says deepens the conflict-of-interest concerns.
Governance Without Approval?
TCA further alleges that matches under the banner of the G. Venkata Swamy Memorial Inter-District T20 League have been conducted without a duly constituted or BCCI-approved Governing Council, as mandated by BCCI and HCA regulations. According to the letter, the tournament has been run at the discretion of a few individuals, without adherence to the BCCI Code of Conduct or established governance frameworks.
Such unauthorised conduct, TCA argues, raises serious questions about governance standards, financial propriety and accountability within HCA — issues that have haunted the association for years.
Third, TCA highlights its pending dispute with HCA, which is already before the Bombay High Court, rooted in the BCCI’s 11 July 2021 order and HCA’s admitted non-compliance discussed during a meeting between TCA and HCA on 29 March 2025. Despite these proceedings, TCA alleges that HCA has continued to act unilaterally.
Silence That Speaks Loudly
Perhaps most damning is TCA’s claim that it has already written to Justice Naveen Rao (Retd.), the then Single Member Committee (SMC) of HCA, with copies marked to BCCI, flagging these very issues. According to TCA, neither BCCI nor the SMC responded.
That silence, stakeholders argue, has only emboldened what they describe as a “hand-in-glove” arrangement within HCA — an allegation TCA frames as a clear violation of conflict-of-interest norms and BCCI regulations.
A Test for the Ombudsman
In its concluding appeal, TCA urges Justice Naveen Rao to:
- Stop the proposed Inter-District T20 League immediately
- Enforce compliance with the BCCI’s 11 July 2021 order, as well as ongoing court proceedings
- Direct HCA to refrain from conducting any inter-district tournaments until all legal, constitutional and regulatory issues are resolved
The ball, quite literally, is now in the Ombudsman’s court.
For Telangana cricket, this moment is bigger than one tournament or one association. It is a test of whether oversight mechanisms exist merely on paper — or whether they can finally restore credibility, fairness and opportunity to a system many believe has been hijacked for far too long.
The cost of continued silence, critics warn, will not be borne by administrators — but by a generation of young cricketers whose dreams risk being suffocated by governance failure.
