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'Shashank Manohar's latest move to go to ICC shows that he is a power-hungry official.'
Petitioner in IPL spot-fixing case slams outgoing BCCI chief.
Aditya Verma, the petitioner in IPL spot-fixing case, has termed outgoing Board of Control for Cricket in India president Shashank Manohar as a "power hungry backstabber" who has failed to keep his promise of cleaning up the game.
A peeved Verma went to the extent of saying that at least former president and Tamil Nadu strongman Narayanswami Srinivasan was a man who would "fight manfully against his foes in an honest manner”.
"Shashank Manohar's latest move to go to ICC shows that he is a power-hungry official. When he was not in power he spoke about cleansing the game and now he is leaving BCCI without completing his job. Also he is a man who believes in back-stabbing as he and his group used me in their battle against N Srinivasan and then backstabbed without fulfilling promises," an angry Verma said on Tuesday.
He felt that at least Srinivasan, whatever his intentions may have been, was "Man enough" to do it in front of everyone and never broke the trust of his allies.
"Srinivasan dusmani bhi shaan se kartaa thaa aur apne doston ko kabhi dhokha naahin diya. (Srinivasan maintained his enmity with honesty and never ditched his friends). For Manohar, promises meant nothing. I understood that when with help of Ratnakar Shetty I was thrown out of the BCCI office; it was Manohar behind the move. I had made numerous complaints about Shetty and that fell on deaf ears," said Verma.
Having been dumped by all who had once allegedly used him as their front in their bid to oust N Srinivasan, Verma's only hope now is the Supreme Court of India. He also hopes that Lodha Committee's reforms will be implemented in toto.
"My only hope now is SC verdict. I hope after that youngsters of Bihar will again get to play in BCCI tournaments and be considered for national team selections."
Image: Aditya Verma
Photograph: Harish Kotian/Rediff.com