GUWAHATI, Jan 2 - The Association for Cricketers of Assam along with former players today demanded a life ban on tainted Assam Cricket Association (ACA) secretary Bikash Baruah.
A disciplinary sub-committee of the ACA is all set to discuss tomorrow regarding the reported recovery of some cheques from Baruah�s office chamber. According to sources, 61 cheques and certificates meant for players, issued by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in 2010, were intentionally held back by the secretary.
President of Association for Cricketers of Assam, Dipak Das at a press meet here demanded that the ACA should impose a life ban on Baruah.
Earlier, Baruah gave a clarification soon after the issue came into limelight stating that the cheques were misplaced in 2007 and that he wrote to the BCCI regarding the matter.
�I have learnt from television that some cheques have been recovered from the drawer of my table during shifting of the office. Yes, some cheques for Rs 12 lakh (BCCI match fees) signed in 2007 had been missing and we had informed the BCCI about it then and in all probability the board might have cleared the unpaid dues to players. However, if any player makes a valid claim for money due to him or her now, I am ready to pay the amount from my personal account,� Baruah was quoted as saying.
�If at all correspondence did occur between the ACA and BCCI about the misplaced cheques, then where is the correspondence letter? BCCI had issued these cheques in 2010, then did Bikash Baruah have premonition in 2007 that he was going to lose these cheques and started correspondence then?� Das questioned.
Former Ranji players, including Bimal Bharali, Sajjad Zaheer Hussain among others were present in the press meet.
