State cricket elections will proceed to avoid BCCI penalties
Odisha Cricket Association officials must conduct their internal polling without further delays to strictly comply with national directives. President Pankaj Lochan Mohanty submitted a detailed affidavit to the Orissa High Court on Thursday, clarifying that the state body cannot postpone its voting schedule in defiance of Board of Control for Cricket in India regulations.
Addressing legal challenges initiated by Lalitendu Bidyadhar Mohapatra on behalf of the Cuttack-based Sunrise Club, Mohanty responded directly to concerns over the stalled October 2026 electoral timeline. High Court justices formally reviewed this official response today and scheduled the next round of judicial hearings for September 22.
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Background on state cricket leadership
Electoral timelines within regional sports federations remain closely monitored following major administrative governance reforms mandated across the country over recent years. The last complete regional cricket elections occurred in October 2022. Following the unexpected resignation of former chief Pranab Prakash Das, administrators unanimously elected Mohanty to the top executive position in February 2025.
In his latest legal submission, Mohanty emphasized that state associations operate as permanent affiliates of the national parent organization and must follow standardized frameworks. He stated, "The OCA as the permanent affiliated body of the BCCI, follows the Memorandum of Association and Rules and Regulations of the BCCI. Hence OCA cannot take a different stand contrary to the stand taken by the BCCI. Such deviation could put our membership and grants on stack."
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Earlier this year, internal association dynamics presented a noticeably different administrative narrative. Secretary Sanjay Behera previously defended a February 22 resolution by the general body to temporarily suspend the entire polling process. At that specific time, local administrators cited significant confusion regarding how the newly introduced National Sports Governance Act of 2025 might impact their internal operations.
Defending that previous stance, an earlier legal filing argued that a general body serves as the ultimate decision-making authority for any registered association. It claimed that any resolution adopted by a legitimate majority legally binds all affiliated members, regardless of their attendance or dissenting opinions. Despite those past arguments, current leadership now firmly prioritizes strict alignment with national cricket board mandates to safeguard critical funding and official recognition.
