Vaibhav Gehlot elected RCA President

The Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot's son Vaibhav Gehlot, is the new President of the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA). Gehlot won the elections on Friday by 25 votes.

Vaibhav has replaced Dr. CP Joshi as the new President of the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA). Joshi, who is the speaker at Rajasthan Assembly had given his support to the candidature of Vaibhav Gehlot.

Amin Pathan was elected vice president while Mahendra Sharma became the new secretary.

Vaibhav Gehlot was expected to win unopposed after the nomination of the former leader of opposition Rameshwar Dudi was rejected but Ram Prakash Choudhary, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader from Jodhpur fought against him for the post of president of Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA). Choudhary, the secretary of Jodhpur District Cricket Association, is considered close to Dudi.

Soon after winning the elections, Vaibhav Gehlot told reporters, "Our aim is to help young people who have an interest in cricket and want to move ahead in the game. We will encourage everyone who is interested in cricket".

With his entry in the state’s cricket administration, this is Junior Gehlot's second innings after unsuccessfully contesting the Lok Sabha election from Jodhpur this year. Vaibhav Gehlot had last month entered into the cricket politics in Rajasthan after he was appointed as the treasurer of the Rajsamand Cricket Association in Rajsamand district.

Rameshwar Dudi, former leader of opposition in the Rajasthan Assembly had leveled serious allegations against seasoned politician of the Congress, Dr. CP Joshi. Dudi has alleged that Dr. Joshi has been indulging in gross misuse of power for the upcoming elections of RCA.

Dudi’s papers were rejected under the norms of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). BCCI rules say candidates with an affiliation to the district cricket associations of Alwar, Nagaur and Ganganagar—which are directly or indirectly linked to Lalit Modi—cannot contest elections to sports bodies under it.

Vaibhav Gehlot had fought the Lok Sabha election from Jodhpur Lok Sabha constituency on Congress ticket. But he lost against the BJP's Gajendra Singh Shekhawat. Because of this Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot faced criticism for his son's loss from Jodhpur, which was considered his stronghold.