11 July:Peeved at "some people in Bengal cricket" harassing his family, particularly his brother Snehashish, former India captain Sourav Ganguly threatened to stop playing for the state.
However, denying any rift with former ICC chief Jagmohan Dalmiya, who is fighting for the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) top post in the AGM on 29th July, Ganguly said, "I’ve nothing against Dalmiya."
"I don’t have any problem with him (Dalmiya) coming to power. My only concern is the problem to my family because of some CAB members. I can’t tolerate this anymore. If they continue to talk bad things about my family, I’ll certainly pull out from Bengal," Ganguly told reporters at his Behala residence on Thursday.
However, the left-hander said, this season he is "available for Bengal" that will fight it out in the Plate Division of Ranji Trophy.However, a news paper on Thursday quoted Ganguly as saying that he would stop playing for Bengal if Dalmiya comes back to power.
"During Dalmiya’s time, I was dropped from the side and the lost the captaincy and if he again comes back to power, I’ll face more difficulties. So it’ll be better to leave Bengal in such a situation," Ganguly told.
"Nobody will like to leave Bengal, something which will be painful. I’ll be in tears to leave Bengal, so I can’t think of that. However, if an administration which is not friendly with the players and the cricket comes to power, then I’ve to think of the drastic step. Dalmiya and Co will not be good for Bengal cricket," Ganguly was quoted as saying.
Ganguly’s anger is apparently directed at some people in the CAB ranks who have alleged that Snehashish took advantage of his assistant secretary post and was running the show by interfering in Bengal team and captain selection last season.
The former Bengal coach Bharat Arun apparently did not favour Laxmi Ratan Shukla, who was eventually made the captain on Snehashis’s insistence.
"The coach wanted (Manoj) Tiwary to be the captain. But on Snehashis’s insistence, Shukla was made the skipper and the Bengal’s plight last season is well known," said a CAB source.
Another reason for Ganguly’s outburst few days before the election may be after the ruling party chose not to give Snehashish a ticket to fight for the post of joint-secretary.
CAB joint-secretary Samar Paul has already made it clear that Prasun Mukherjee camp will retain the same panel that is Amitava Banerjee and himself as the two joint secretaries, Russi Jeejibhoy, Nimai Charan Dutta, Indranath Dey and Subhashis Sarkar as the four vice-presidents and Tushar Sarkar as the treasurer.
Asked at whom Ganguly hinted when he said that he was not happy with some CAB members, Paul however declined to comment on that."I don’t know the issue and what he (Ganguly) is referring to. So I’ve no comments to make. We the CAB office bearers have no issue with him," he said.
Dalmiya confidant Biwarup Dey said nobody from the opposition camp had said anything against the Ganguly family.Another thing which might have angered the former Indian captain was the fact that his ailing father Chandidas Ganguly, who is also the trustee board chairman, will not be retained this time, claimed the CAB source.
The elections to the five seats on CAB’s board of trustees, which comes up every five years, will also take place at the AGM on 29th July.If sources are to be believed, veteran official Arun Mitra’s name is making the rounds as one of the joint-secretarial candidates apart from Naresh Ojha and Dey in the Dalmiya panel.
The four likely vice-presidential candidates are Shibaji Dutta, Samar Kar, Shib Kumar Kalyani and Saradindu Pal.However, Kar is more interested in being inducted in to the trustee board.
Among those vying for the trustee board berths are Rabi Mitra (International), Debabrata Bhattacharya (Bani Niketan) and Ambika Banerjee (Shibpur Institute). Courtsey DD NEWS