Srinivasan, who had stepped aside to facilitate a probe into betting and spot-fixing allegations against his son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan and IPL franchises CSK and RR, thus continues to find himself on the sidelines.
He is, however, determined to chair BCCI's annual general meeting in Chennai on September 29, as well as the SGM (Sept 25) that precedes it. So the battle lines are drawn for a power struggle in the cricket board.
With the apex court making it clear that it is in no hurry to dispose of the BCCI's petition, Srinivasan has no option but to bite the bullet and seek a fresh mandate from the board members in order to extend his innings at the helm of Indian cricket by one year.
Technically, Srinivasan is well within his rights to seek a re-election. Even the charge-sheet filed by the CBI against the India Cements MD in the Jaganmohan Reddy case, does not bar him from contesting for the top job in the BCCI.
Registered under the Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act, the BCCI constitution only bars a convicted member from discharging his honorary duties.
Srinivasan is likely to use this provision in the BCCI constitution to regain the post from which he had "voluntarily" stepped aside for the sake of propriety.
His hard line has already fractured the BCCI and could well alienate him further from the so-called 'neutral' members who now fear government intervention in cricket administration if the house is not set in order quickly.
Thursday's adjournment could well hasten the polarisation within the BCCI and the possibility of someone challenging him for the president's post at the September 29 AGM now looks like a distinct possibility.
Srinivasan has approximately two weeks to work the numbers. He will need at least 24 votes to expel the discredited Lalit Modi from the BCCI at the SGM and at least 16 at the AGM to hang on to his chair.
SC adjourns hearing
The Supreme Court on Thursday postponed the hearing between the BCCI and the Cricket Association of Bihar by two weeks, saying the case was not urgent and can be heard at a later date.
The BCCI lawyers requested that the case be heard on an urgent basis but the two-judge bench said the board was free to go to the chief justice and seek another bench for quick disposal.
The delay should come as a setback for the board that has its Annual General Meeting (AGM) coming up at the end of this month and especially with present BCCI president N Srinivasan battling to hold ground and seek another year's extension.
At the moment, Srinivasan has technically stepped aside as president, allowing Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) chief Jagmohan Dalmiya to operate.
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