Gulzar Inder Chahal elected as PCA president

Hailing from Patiala, the 39-year-old is the youngest PCA president till date; has succeeded noted industrialist Rajinder Gupta, who had resigned in April after his tenure got over

Former cricketer and actor Gulzar Inder Singh Chahal, 39, was unanimously elected as the new president of the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) on Thursday.

Newly elected Gulzar Inder Singh Chahal (centre) addresses the members during the annual general meeting at the IS Bindra PCA stadium in Mohali. (HT Photo)

Hailing from Patiala, the 39-year-old is the youngest PCA president till date. He has succeeded noted industrialist Rajinder Gupta, who had resigned in April after his tenure got over.

Four more office-bearers, including vice-president Gagan Khanna, secretary Dilsher Khanna, joint secretary Surjit Rai and treasurer Rakesh Walia, were also elected at PCA’s annual general meeting at its stadium in Phase 9, Mohali.

Besides, Sandeep Singh (Hoshiarpur), Gauravdeep Singh Dhaliwal (Ropar), Binwant Singh Sehgal (Gurdaspur), Sahebjeet Sehmby (Kapurthala), Rishi Pahwa (Ludhiana), Arvind Abrol, Akash Rathour (Jalandhar), Daksh Prem Azad (Fatehgarh Sahib) and Vikram Sidhu (Jalandhar) were picked as members of the Apex Council.

Son of retired Punjab deputy inspector general of police (DIG) Harinder Singh Chahal, Gulzar played Under-15 cricket for India, alongside the likes of Reetinder Singh Sodhi and Mohammad Kaif. He had opened bowling for India against Pakistan in the Lombard Under-15 Challenge Cup at Lord’s, London, in 1996. The Indian team had won the match by four wickets.

Soon after taking on the mantle of PCA president, Gulzar said he will work towards developing cricket-related infrastructure all across Punjab, with priority on completing the construction of Mullanpur Stadium in Mohali. He said he also aimed to start school, college and Punjab leagues to spot and nurture talent.