Lack of time forced me to resign - Pawar

Sharad Pawar, the president of the Mumbai Cricket Association and a candidate for BCCI presidency, has denied that he resigned from the marketing committee of the board because he was dissatisfied with its functioning. Clarifying his reason for quitting the committee, Pawar said he "did not have time to attend the meetings [of the marketing committee] because of his political commitments.'' The Indian Express quoted him as saying: "For me, there are more important social issues and BCCI is hardly a social issue.''

Earlier, there had been conflicting reports on why Pawar had quit from the committee. While some suggested it was due to lack of time, other sources indicated that Pawar had resigned because he felt the BCCI accounts were not in order.

Pawar's comments came a day before an important meeting of the marketing committee in Mumbai, in which the contentious issue of telecast rights of international matches in India over the next four years will be discussed. However, due to a ruling by the Delhi High Court, the outcome of the meeting will only be revealed before the court on October 19.