New Delhi: Bishan Singh Bedi demands removal of his name from Feroz Shah Kotla stand, threatens legal action against DDCA
Former India cricketer Bishan Singh Bedi has demanded the immediate removal of his name from the Feroz Shah Kotla stand after he renounced his membership earlier this week. Bedi has also threatened DDCA with legal action if his name isn’t removed.
Bedi also renounced his membership with the DDCA, who had named one of the stands after Bedi in November 2017 along with another stand named after former India cricketer Mohinder Amarnath.
“Your seemingly ill-advised silence to my letter that has triggered a public debate about perpetuating politicians at sporting venues exposes your naivety. Your inexplicable silence also underlines guilt of occupying a position of power solely because of your family name, which, you obviously wish to promote, come what may,” he wrote.
“Finally, I hope you will have the basic courtesy to reply to a former cricketer who is not asking for a favour, but wants his cricketing integrity not to be bartered away.”
“I’ve been around long to know DDCA has a tradition of ignoring cricketers’ voice, hence this reminder. There’s a reason for my urgent request,” the 74-year-old said.
“… Not for a day or even a minute would I feel better to be part of a cricket stadium which has a statue of a person, who I strongly believe, brought down cricketing values in the Capital hugely to say the least. No, I don’t wish a stand in my name when late Arun Jaitley’s statue is erected without any visible shame.”
The late Arun Jaitley, father of the current President Rohan Jaitley, was the DDCA president for 14 years, spanning from 1999 to 2013 and the board announced a six-foot statue of him to be installed at the Kotla stadium in his honour. Arun Jaitley passed away in August 2019.
