It has come to fore that erstwhile General Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association (JKCA) in a bid to scuttle the cricket schedule in State had requested to Board of Cricket Control of India that none of the matches scheduled to be played in Jammu and Kashmir should be played due to unfit condition of the cricket ground.Displaying the letter written by erstwhile General Secretary JKCA M.L Nehru to reporters here during a press conference, Chairman JKCA Mehboob Iqbal said that they were shocked after they receive a communiqué from BCCI about the issue.“The letter written by Nehru to BCCI who is loyal to Farooq Abdullah reads that scheduled cricket matches in Jammu and Kashmir especially in Kashmir should not be allowed to take place as the grounds/wickets are not fit this year for playing these matches as we have not been able to prepare them suitably after the floods of September 2014 and subsequent continuous rains. Moreover, our Jammu ground is also not fit for hoisting the Ranji and other BCCI matches. It is therefore informed in time and requested that all the matches scheduled to be played in Jammu and Kashmir be shifted to other venues outside J&K.”
Mehboob Iqbal according to CNS said that instead of mentioning the address of JKCA headquarters, Nehru has mentioned his residential address, so that no one could have come to know about his designs. “This is not only shocking but bizarre. Do the former JKCA body wanted to improve the cricket here or they wanted to mint money only,” he said.JKCA Chairman said that Farooq Abdullah loyal Nehru is responsible for damaging the interests of J&K Cricket players by shifting the matches to outside state presenting a dismal picture of wickets and grounds of JKCA only to benefit some people by conducting camps at Nagpur Maharashtra. He is trying to send a message to other states that conditions are not conducive for cricketing activities in Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.Mehboob Iqbal said that the present body of JKCA is fully geared up to host all the allotted matches at Jammu and Srinagar. “In a meeting at Rohtak Haryana, it was decided that some cricket matches will be played in Jammu and Kashmir. After the Nehru’s negative letter, we intimated BCCI about the factual position and now the Association is fully geared up to host all the allotted matches at Jammu and Srinagar. We recommend strict action against Nehru at Government level,” he said. (CNS)