Diana Edulji Diana Edulji

LESS THAN a fortnight after the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators (CoA) cleared their own World Cup trip to England, one of its members, Diana Edulji, has objected to the move on “moral grounds”.

Edulji said she isn’t sure if the other two CoA members — former CAG chief Vinod Rai and retired Lt Gen (retd) Ravi Thodge — will fly to England for the event but said she would not go on the BCCI’s expense.

READ | CoA clears own World Cup junket to England

“I am sure I am not going. I don’t know yet whether the other two will be travelling or not. May be they are, but I have objected. Even in the meeting (which decided the travel plans), I had said that I am not going, that I’m not interested in this,” the former India skipper told The Indian Express.

Edulji said she had also shot down the BCCI finance team’s proposal for a picnic to Goa, which would have cost the board close to Rs 25 lakh.

Edulji acknowledged that her objections to the CoA’s England trip was because of the Supreme Court brief that confined the panel to administering cricket and implementing the Justice RM Lodha’s recommendations.

“That is the reason. I didn’t go when the women’s team entered the final of the World Cup in 2017 in England. I was offered a chance to go, but I did not because I felt it was not right. I have also objected to the finance team going to Goa for a picnic spending Rs 25 lakh. How can I think of going to England now? My view is very clear: I am not going to England at the BCCI’s cost,” she said.

Edulji said that while CoA members won’t be paid a daily allowance at the World Cup, all other expenses would be met by the board. The BCCI’s office-bearers, however, would receive $750 per day in fixed allowance.

The CoA has previously stopped BCCI office-bearers from travelling overseas to watch games. BCCI acting secretary Amitabh Choudhary was not allowed to travel to Sri Lanka for the Nidahas Trophy. He was also questioned when he wanted to watch an India-England game on the sidelines of an ICC meeting in England last year. A day later, CEO Rahul Johri was told to cancel his plans to watch the T20s against England, and return to India to attend a Supreme Court hearing the next day.

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