Ashok Gehot’s son Vaibhav Gehlot
Credit: X/vaibhavgehlot
Jaipur: Former Chief Minister Ashok Gehot’s son Vaibhav Gehlot, a Congress leader and president of Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA) resigned today, alleging he was being deliberately targeted after the change of regime in the state.
In his resignation letter, Vaibhav has said inspite of his best efforts to create a positive environment for cricket and the players, it seems there is an attempt to create an “atmosphere of distrust” in the RCA and that too with malicious intent.
He said before his predecessor and Congress leader C P Joshi took over in 2017, the BCCI had banned RCA and no International cricket, especially IPL matches, could take place here. He says he has tried to increase youth participation and interest in cricket. He said his efforts resulted in the BCCI granting them matches in Rajasthan and not just in Jaipur but Jodhpur as well, so that players from all over the state could participate. He is also supposed to have begun construction of a cricket stadium solely for RCA, with the help of Rs 300 crore funding from Vedanta group. And at least construction worth Rs 60 lakh is over.
He says despite his best efforts to build a cricket economy to provide employment to many involved in the sports, a no-confidence motion was presented against him with no prior information or discussion. He wrote: “In such a situation, it is unbearable for me that there should be any crisis in the IPL matches in the state or that cricket should suffer. Therefore, to save the state’s cricket and cricket players from this situation, I voluntarily resign from the post of President of RCA.”
Vaibhav’s resignation comes in the wake of Rajasthan Sports Council’s sealing of the RCA office housed in the Sawai Man Singh Stadium, as they are said to have major pending dues.
His father Ashok Gehlot had earlier criticised the Sports Council’s hasty decision and commented that it was politically motivated.
Political tussle over cricket and its associations increased after BJP leader Rajendra Rathore’s son Parakram Singh entered the fray and became the president of the Churu District Association.
Controversies are not new to the RCA. One of the most hyped of them was when BCCI suspended RCA in 2014 after IPL czar Lalit Modi, who was removed as IPL commissioner, was reelected as RCA president. The suspension was revoked four years later in 2017.