DDCA elections concludes with star turnout on last polling day

Team India superstars Sehwag to Ishant, political bigwigs Manoj Tiwari to Kapil Sibal, BCCI mandarins Rajiv Shukla to Anirudh Chaudhary and a Hockey Olympian turned out to cast their vote on the last day

The colossal Virender Sehwag Gate, fiercely guarded since 11am, was swung wide open for the first time on Saturday afternoon to allow a small budget-class sedan inside the Feroz Shah Kotla premises. The man inside was a life member, ostensibly in need of dire medical supervision, and was slowly guided on a wheelchair through a sea of orange and blue supporters, cheering for opposite contesting factions.

Some would term it as enthusiasm for an election to have happened after five long years of judicial intervention to sort out the mess; some would read this as a measure of desperation from factions in a high-stake contest to force an ailing member out of bed and endure him this humidity.

Delhi & District Cricket Association elections, that concluded today after a mammoth four-day exercise, is exactly how one would like to perceive it—if there was compassion, there was sheer compulsion as well to swing open the Sehwag gate on more occasions and allow the political bigwigs.

DDCA elections is an important one, not just for the reputation of the presidential candidates Madan Lal, Vikas Singh and Rajat Sharma but for Justice Lodha as well to justify his reform movement that is on trial mode here and yet to be injected onto BCCI. And no matter how much you scoff at the reforms which have been allegedly followed only in letter and not in spirit—courtesy the old guard clinging on to the branches of the family tree—the impending reforms promised much more than what one envisaged. 

DDCA elections ought to be celebrated, and there are several reasons why. The voting is the highest ever in DDCA history—approximately 2800+ out of 3300 odd total eligible members, with Saturday seeing around 950 voters turning out. Abolition of proxy meant the members turned out in person, and as it turned the effort put in by cricketers to participate in the elections was the icing on the cake. Aakash Chopra and Rahul Sanghvi zipped in and out from Mumbai yesterday just to cast their vote, while Ishant Sharma timed his NCA stint accordingly that he could cast his ballot on Saturday. So, did Virender Sehwag today and Gautam Gambhir yesterday. Almost every single cricketer walked up to the electronic tablet voting centre—be it Manoj Prabhakar, Vivek Razdan, Nikhil Chopra, Parvinder Awana, Yashpal Sharma, Sunil Valson, Sanjeev Sharma.

Bishan Bedi and Kirti Azad, the men primarily responsible for these sanitized elections, were also seen, and so did several others who never turned up before – like actor-singer and now BJP MP Manoj Tiwari and Congress heavyweight Kapil Sibal. On the BCCI front, there was IPL chairman Rajiv Shukla and treasurer Anirudh Chaudhary who turned up on Saturday, and were greeted by their BCCI president, CK Khanna, who braved the sun the entire duration, to silently support his wife for vice-president. However, on a slightly controversial context, dual membership – like in case of former UPCA chief Shukla and Haryana supremo Chaudhary—could come across as the next big bone of contention.

And then there is a ‘odd’ example of a Hockey World Cup winning skipper, Ajit Pal Singh, who cast his vote for a better cricket association. Nevertheless, in a place where traders, politician, businessmen squabble for subsidized booze, truckloads of money, power and free match tickets, occasionally also indulging in some cricketing activities, a sportsman is a refreshing change. Even though for some, Ajit Pal Singh is just like another member. And for some he is perceived an outsider. And that’s why DDCA elections are exactly how you perceive it. Welcome it or slam it. But the impact is made.

And the impact is visible on both Madan Lal and Rajat Sharma faces by evening; and their entire team as well. Members have cross-voted, or to put it correctly, voted democratically by their own will. No one can predict the winner. Even an assigned exit poll has been dismissed as an inexact indicator. This one is likely to be oh-so close. And that is exactly what one expected to deliver from these elections. Results will be out Monday at 12 noon. Maybe in a day, it will be about what choice the members made, but for now, it's time to enjoy the feeling that the members had a choice.