Key Points

The Apex Council has re-appointed J. S. Saharia, former Chief Secretary and former State Election Commissioner of Maharashtra, as the Electoral Officer to oversee the elections for a second consecutive year.

"The election was originally scheduled for October 23 but due to the festive season, it was decided that we would conduct it on November 12 so that nobody's festivities are disturbed," an MCA official told IANS.

In July last year, the association appointed incumbent secretary Ajinkya Naik as the president. He became the youngest ever to hold the position and replaced the late Amol Kale after the latter's sudden demise in June 2024 in New York.

Naik, who was 37 when elected, won by defeating Vice-President Sanjay Naik, backed by Mumbai BJP chief and BCCI Treasurer Ashish Shelar, by 107 votes in the election held on Tuesday. He received 221 votes, while Sanjay got 114, making it a largely one-sided contest.

During the Apex Council meeting held on Wednesday, the MCA decided to install a life-sized statue of former India captain Dilip Vengsarkar at the iconic Wankhede Stadium.

Notably, Vengsarkar has also served as the association's vice-president and was conferred with the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award by the MCA earlier this year in March.

The MCA also decided to set up academies across the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) to provide world-class training and infrastructure to promising young players.

Recently, the association unveiled a statue of Sunil Gavaskar inside the Wankhede premises. The stadium also already features a statue of legend Sachin Tendulkar.

It had also inaugurated the Sharad Pawar Museum at the Wankhede Stadium as a tribute to Mumbai's unparalleled contribution to Indian and global cricket in August this year.

- IANS