Sanjay Jagdale is new secretary, Mohinder Amarnath set to join as selector

MUMBAI: Batting legend Mohinder Amarnath, who once famously called the selectors a "bunch of jokers", is all set to join the national selection panel as its North Zone representative. Amarnath's name has been recommended by North Zone vice president and senior politician Arun Jaitley and it is reliably learnt that the ex-cricketer has given his approval for the same.
The BCCI is also likely to retain current selection committee chairman K Srikkanth who will complete his term next year after which Amarnath, who will replace Yashpal Sharma from the North, will take over as the panel chief.In another surprising move, the board decided to bring in current joint secretary from the Central Zone, Sanjay Jagdale, as the new honorary secretary of BCCI. Jagdale will take over from N Srinivasan who will be the new president.
According to a release by the BCCI, the elections during the AGM on Monday will be straight affairs as none of the positions have received more than one nomination. However, none of the top board officials were willing to comment on the issue. When contacted, Srikkanth refused to either confirm or deny the development.
West Zone selector Surendra Bhave and Central Zone's Narendra Hirwani are most likely to retain their positions, despite Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) requesting for a change. The MCA has urged for Bhave's ouster because they claimed that Mumbai cricketers were getting overlooked in recent years.
However, Bhave and Hirwani will stay in their positions for another year, it is learnt.
The only uncertainty concerning the selection committee revolves around East Zone representative Raja Venkat, who is facing opposition from his own zone and state administration. If Venkat goes, which is most likely, former left-arm spinner Arup Bhattacharya or former batsman Devang Gandhi could be possible replacements.
To accommodate Amarnath in the selection committee, the board has also allowed him to relinquish his current position as a governing council member of the Indian Premier League, of which he had been a member for a year now.
Thakur is new joint secretary
Sanjay Jagdale, a quiet and unassuming administrator over the last decade and also a former national selector, hails from Indore and his inclusion as secretary comes at the cost of East Zone's Ranjib Biswal. The latter was expected to take over the position but it is learnt that he too, like Venkat, lost out because of the zone's internal bickering.
Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association president Anurag Thakur, outgoing president Shashank Manohar's blue-eyed boy, now takes charge as joint secretary while Maharashtra Cricket Association president Ajay Shirke takes over as the treasurer.
Three of the five zonal vice-presidents were also renominated - Arun Jaitley (North), Shivlal Yadav (South) and Niranjan Shah (West). Chitrak Mitra, of Bengal, will replace Arindam Ganguly while Sudhir Dahir, from Vidharba, will take over from Rajiv Shukla as the Central Zone vice-president. Dahir's nomination makes it virtually clear that Shukla will be unveiled as the new IPL chairman.
Raman, Kumble to get more responsibilities
Among other developments, IPL CEO Sundar Raman and former India captain and Karnataka State Cricket Association president Anil Kumble can expect bigger roles where BCCI administration and the National Cricket Academy are concerned. Raman has been at the centre of all developments in IPL and the Champions League, is known to be the brain behind its success, and enjoys the support of Manohar and Srinivasan. While it is not known what exact position will Raman be give, it is learnt that his responsibilities will be on par with that of a chief executive of the board.