The recently sacked Sri Lankan cricket board, headed by ThilangaSumathipala, received a set back in their fight to reinstate the Board ofControl for Cricket in Sri Lanka (BCCSL) yesterday when the Court of Appealpostponed their case until 22nd May
CricInfo05-May-2001The recently sacked Sri Lankan cricket board, headed by ThilangaSumathipala, received a set back in their fight to reinstate the Board ofControl for Cricket in Sri Lanka (BCCSL) yesterday when the Court of Appealpostponed their case until 22nd May.Mohan de Silva and Trevor Rajaratnam, the secretary and treasurer of theoutgoing board, filed a petition on the 4th April, which argued that thedissolution of the BCCSL by the Sports Minister and the subsequentappointment of an Interim Committee was unlawful according to the presentSports Law.The decision to postpone the case ensures that the uncertainty over thelegitimacy of the Interim Committee is to continue, but considering thewidespread political support for the dissolution, the Interim Committee isexpected to hold office until the 2003 World Cup.The Interim Committee unveiled it’s plans for the future at a recent pressgathering, which included a constitutional review, a corporate sector stylemanagement, the separation of financial management and policy making, andemployment of Barry Richards as a batting coach. Yesterday they revealed theappointment of several former players as committee members in the caretakeradministration.In a separate case, filed by Clifford Ratwatte, the uncle of the Sri LankanPresident and a former cricket board contestant, Sumathipala has been givenuntil the 12th June to file his objections. Ratwatte has argued thatSumathipala and eight other former members of the cricket board, violated aDistrict Court order, which had prevented them holding office.