Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) President Jagmohan Dalmiya passed away Sunday following a heart attack at a hospital in Kolkata. Dalmiya, who was 75 years-old at the time of his passing away, was admitted to the BM Birla Heart Research Institute at Alipore in South Kolkata a few hours prior to his demise. A number of eminent personalities were at the hospital to pay their respects to the Kolkata businessman, who took over the post from N Srinivasan in a landslide victory in March earlier this year after a gap of over 10 years. The likes of former India captain and Dalmiya’s once-tight friend Sourav Ganguly, Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) officials, State Ministers as well as family members were present during his last moments.
Dalmiya, who also held the position of the CAB President, was reported to be faring quite poorly in terms of his health. He was reported to be suffering from Alzheimer’s disease that he had contracted recently and due to which he suffered frequent bouts of memory loss. He was reported to hardly have turned up for work since being elected to the post of BCCI president. Dalmiya was said to have arrived 40 minutes late in his last committee meeting, in which he reportedly mumbled a few sentences, before adjourning the meeting due to the presence of N Srinivasan given the conflict of interest issue.
According to a report on DNA, former BCCI and ICC President Sharad Pawar is said to have contacted Union Minister Arun Jaitley, in which he put forward his demand for his removal from the post due to his vegetative state. Dalmiya was also assisted by his son, Abhishek, over matters pertaining to the board, which reportedly did not go down well with rival members. Dalmiya, however, was extensively defended by BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur, who stated that “all steps taken by us (BCCI) in recent times have been done under his guidance and with his support.”
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