Serial No.19 Supplementary List HIGH COURT OF MEGHALAYA AT SHILLONG WP (C) No.648/2025 Date of order: 16.12.2025 Shillong Cricket Association, Polo Ground, Shillong 793001, through its President Shri Peter Macdonald K. Sawian Vs.

1. Meghalaya Cricket Association, through its Honorary Secretary, J.N.

Stadium, Polo Ground, Shillong-793001.

2. Mr. Hemant Nazary, IAS (Retd.), Returning Officer, Meghalaya Cricket Association, J.N. Stadium, Polo Ground, Shillong-793001.

3. The Board of Control for Cricket in India, 4^th Floor, Cricket Centre, Wankhede Stadium ‘D’ Road, Churchgate, Mumbai-40020.

4. Mr. Rayonald Kharkamni, Honorary Secretary, Meghalaya Cricket Association, J.N. Stadium, Polo Ground, Shillong.

5. The Deputy Commissioner, East Khasi Hills District, Shillong.

Coram:

Hon’ble Mr. Justice H.S. Thangkhiew, Judge Appearance:

For the Petitioner : Dr. N. Mozika, DSGI with Ms. K. Gurung, Adv For the Respondents : Mr. S. Dutta, Sr.Adv with Mr. I. Lahiri, Adv Mr. P. Sengupta, Adv Mr. K.V. Kharlyngdoh, Adv for R/1-4 Mr. N.D. Chullai, AAG with Ms. R. Colney, GA i) Whether approved for Yes/No reporting in Law journals etc.:

ii) Whether approved for publication Yes/No in press:

JUDGMENT: (Oral)

The present writ petition has been filed by the Shillong Cricket Association (SCA) an affiliated to the Meghalaya Cricket Association (MCA) which is in turn affiliated to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The grievance as set forth is with the electoral process adopted for the MCA General Elections 2025, on the ground that the process adopted is irregular, arbitrary, opaque and not in consonance with the BCCI Memorandum of Association, and the Rules and Regulations thereof, and also of the MCA Memorandum of Association, and the Rules and Regulations as amended.

2. The core questions that have been raised by the petitioner is firstly with the appointment of the respondent No.2 a former Chief Electoral of Assam, as the Electoral Officer to conduct the elections on the ground that it violates Rule 36 of the MCA Constitution which stipulates that the Electoral Officer should be a former Central or State Election Commissioner. The other question that has been raised is with the schedule for the elections wherein, it is alleged that the same suffers from critical procedural flaws, notably with regard to the preparation of the draft electoral roll published on 26.11.2025 and the final electoral roll published on 27.11.2025 where the names of the authorised voting representatives of the affiliated units of the MCA were not disclosed. Further, it has been contended that the window for objections provided in the schedule, were illusory and deprived members of any meaningful opportunity to scrutinize voter eligibility, inasmuch as, the names of the representatives was disclosed only on 03.12.2025, after the objection period had closed and the nomination and scrutiny stages over.

3. The President of the Petitioner Association who was also an aspiring candidate for the post of Vice President of the MCA, withdrew his candidature on 02.12.2025 being dissatisfied with the alleged compromise nature of the electoral process and representations to Electoral Officer in-charge of the election and also to the Deputy Commissioner of East Khasi Hills had been preferred on 04.12.2025 which, however, before the same could bear any fruit, in view of the impending elections scheduled for 09.12.2025, the instant writ petition had been filed on 08.12.2025.

4. Dr. N. Mozika, learned senior counsel with Ms. M. Myrchiang on behalf of the petitioner has raised key contentions which are (i) illegal appointment of Electoral Officer (ii) defective electoral roll process (iii) violation of mandatory timelines (iv) truncated and unfair process being adopted and (v) invocation of writ jurisdiction being appropriate as the irregularities were grave and affected public interest. On the first contention, it has been submitted that the Constitution of the MCA at clause 36(1) mandates t