The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced that its chief selector, Chetan Sharma, has resigned from his position after being implicated in a sting operation conducted by a media outlet. The sting operation alleged that Sharma was involved in corrupt practices and that he had been negotiating deals to influence team selection in exchange for money.
Sharma, who played for the Indian cricket team in the 1980s and 1990s, was appointed as the chief selector of the BCCI in December 2020. He was responsible for selecting the Indian cricket team for international matches and overseeing the development of young players.
The allegations against Sharma surfaced when a media outlet released a series of videos that purportedly showed him discussing deals to influence team selection with an undercover reporter posing as a cricket agent. In the videos, Sharma was allegedly heard discussing the possibility of including certain players in the Indian team in exchange for money.
Following the release of the videos, the BCCI launched an investigation into the matter and asked Sharma to step down from his position as chief selector. In a statement, the BCCI said that it takes allegations of corruption very seriously and that it has a zero-tolerance policy towards such practices.
Sharma denied the allegations and claimed that he was being framed. However, he submitted his resignation to the BCCI on Wednesday, saying that he did not want to bring disrepute to the organization.
The resignation of Sharma has come as a blow to the BCCI, which has been embroiled in several controversies in recent years. The organization has been criticized for its lack of transparency and for being too focused on commercial interests.
The BCCI has said that it will continue to investigate the allegations against Sharma and that it will take appropriate action if the allegations are found to be true. The organization has also emphasized that it remains committed to upholding the integrity of the game and to ensuring that cricket is played in a fair and transparent manner.