The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) CEO Rahul Johri, who has been accused of sexual harassment, has been asked to pull out of an upcoming ICC meeting in Singapore.
The Supreme Court appointed Committee of Administration (CoA) has also turned down Rahul Johri’s request for more time to explain the charges levied against him. Acting Secretary of the Board Amitabh Chaudhary will represent BCCI in the ICC meeting scheduled from October-16-19.
“Rahul had sought 14 days for a detailed explanation as he said that he is working with his legal team and since he was also to attend ICC meeting from October 16-19 in Singapore,” CoA chief Vinod Rai was quoted as saying by PTI. “But I clearly told Rahul that I cannot let this issue simmer for 14 days as the BCCI office will be affected by it. Since he wants to sit with his lawyers now, I allowed him exemption from ICC meeting.”
Meanwhile, talking to Hindustan Times, a senior BCCI official said, “If an Indian cricketer’s central contract was put on hold pending enquiry because of allegations which amounted to adultery and domestic violence, the same protocol should have seen the CEO being asked to stay away from the board office till he submits his explanation and the matter is closed,” before adding, “The fact that Johri is essentially responsible for almost everything in the organisation and sits on the top of the pyramid in the organisation chart and that includes dealings with the women cricketers and women employees, it is inconceivable why he has not been suspended pending enquiry, since the allegations against him are not of harassment but of rape.”
The allegations against Rahul Johri, who has been serving as the BCCI CEO since April 2016, has been levelled by an unnamed person. The person claimed to be a colleague of Rahul Johri during his stint with Discovery Channel. Rahul was named by a Twitter user posting on behalf of the woman who does not wish to be named.