Roshanara hijacks Ranji tie

On Thursday, club authorities went a step further, called in police to clear the ground of scribes after media reports blasted the 'no-outsider policy', writes Kadambari Murali.

For the past two days, the public has been barred from watching the ongoing Elite Group Ranji cricket match between Delhi and Andhra at the Roshanara Club. Cricket enthusiasts who made the trip to Roshanara to see some of India's top players in action were unceremoniously turned away by club officials. The club has a strict 'no-outsiders' policy, Ranji match or no. It had informed the Delhi & District Cricket Association (DDCA) of this in writing and DDCA had shockingly agreed.

HT Image

On Thursday, club authorities went a step further. They called in the police to clear the ground of journalists after media reports blasted the 'no-outsider policy' and the manhandling of a Hindustan Times photographer by club personnel on Wednesday.

In fact, on Wednesday, club general secretary Deputy Chatwani shouted at me during the fracas. And a contractor, who reportedly supplies marble to the club, hurled the choicest obscenities. I had tried to intervene when HT photographer Sunil Saxena's camera was shoved by club officials and the camera swivelled and hit his lip. A shaken Saxena threatened to call the police.

Immediately, all hell broke loose. Chatwani began shouting at him while the contractor used vulgar language. Chatwani maintains that the photographer did not identify himself and referred to him as "tu" and not "aap".

Saxena says he was busy clicking away when he was rudely asked to identify himself. Saxena did not know him and asked him what his business was.

Chatwani later said as he was the only one who had a telephone and a tea cup on the table in front of him while others only had cups, Saxena should have realised his importance.

He then called in the security, who tried to take Saxena out of the club when the Delhi Ranji management intervened. Later, Chatwani said Saxena was lucky more club members were not present. "If 20 members were there, we would have beaten him up." In the event, they settled for profanities.

Most newspapers had mentioned the fight and written that a major cricket match was being played without spectators being allowed in. Thursday's media reports angered club officials and when I reached the club at 9 am, I was told I had been barred for "misreporting". I was eventually allowed to enter after the intervention of the Delhi team management. But a little later, I was asked to come to Chatwani's room.

He wanted an unconditional apology in writing for "misreporting" and one from the photographer for saying "tu" or Hindustan Times would not be allowed to set foot in Roshanara. We refused and were ready to leave when DDCA vice-president Chetan Chauhan asked us to stay on. A little later, as Chauhan was talking to a small group of reporters, the cops came and made sure we left the club.

Roshanara is steeped in history. It staged a Northern India vs MCC XI game as far back as 1927. It has staged eight first-class matches. But this kind of behaviour adds nothing to its history. The club executive passed a resolution on Thursday barring Hindustan Times and Times of India from the premises.

Chauhan apologised to the media later for the police action - it had happened in his presence. Later in the evening, DDCA president Arun Jaitley went to Roshanara and spoke to officials for two hours and managed to "persuade" a reluctant management to concede ground and allow the entry of the Press for the last day of the game.

Just not cricket

** BCCI president Ranbir Mahendra asked HT to lodge an official complaint

** DDCA vice-president Chetan Chauhan apologised to the media. “I will talk to sports editors of newspapers, he said

** Match referee Ravi Narayan Panda said he will make his observations to the BCCI