Age manipulation and unfair practices in the selection of players by the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) has not gone down well with the Delhi High Court, which asked the cricket body on Monday to put in place a set of guidelines to tackle the menace.
Acting on a petition
filed by Lokniti Foundation, an NGO which alleged age manipulation in the U-16, U-19 and U-22 categories, a bench headed by Justice BD Ahmed said the state cricket body could follow certain features of the sports ministry’s National Code Against Age Fraud in Sports, which are not currently adopted by the DDCA or the BCCI.
The court said that every player entering the DDCA for selection in any of the three categories would be required to undergo an age-determination examination. “The examination will be carried out by a board of three doctors of Apollo Hospital on the basis of radiological examination/MRI/CT scans as indicated in the National Code,” the court said.
The court said it was up to the medical board to adopt any particular examination it felt necessary for a particular candidate.
Once the age is determined, it would be maintained in the database of the DDCA and would be strictly adhered to by the cricket body throughout the career of the player, the court said.
“We expect and hope that in order to provide a level-playing field to all players selected under the aforesaid categories in different states, the BCCI would also endeavour that they (the guidelines) are adopted throughout India.”
