Cuttack: In a significant shift from the stand taken by Odisha Cricket Association (OCA) secretary Sanjay Behera earlier, its president Pankaj Lochan Mohanty told Orissa high court on Thursday that they cannot keep their elections deferred in violation of the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) rules.Mohanty, in a counter affidavit filed in response to the court’s Aug 13 direction, said the OCA was bound by the Memorandum of Association and Rules and Regulations of the BCCI, framed in the wake of Supreme Court directions. “There is no dispute that … the term for all posts of office bearers in State Associations shall be three years,” Mohanty stated in the affidavit.The OCA’s last full elections were held in Oct 2022. After then-president Pranab Prakash Das resigned, Mohanty was elected unopposed in Feb 2025.The response was placed before Justice M S Sahoo on Thursday, with the matter posted for final hearing on Sept 22.Mohanty filed the affidavit in reply to a petition filed by Lalitendu Bidyadhar Mohapatra, claiming to represent Cuttack-based Sunrise Club, challenging the postponement of the OCA elections, which were due in Oct 2025.The president’s stand assumes significance because Behera had earlier justified the decision of the OCA general body on Feb 22 to defer the elections, citing uncertainty over the applicability of the National Sports Governance Act, 2025. Behera had also referred to cricket’s inclusion as an Olympic sport ahead of the 2028 Games and a Dec 22, 2025, notification of the Union sports ministry providing for deferment of elections of National Sports Federations till Dec 31, 2026, as a transitional measure. The OCA had resolved that the existing office-bearers would continue.Mohanty, however, said the OCA had acted on a “misconception” that cricket was a “designated sport” under the new legislation. He also said there was initially no clarity on whether BCCI came under the Act.BCCI, in its affidavit before the court, stated that cricket had not been notified as a “designated sport” under the 2025 Act and that the board was not governed by its provisions.The OCA president said this meant the state association could not adopt a position contrary to its parent body. “The OCA follows the Memorandum of Association and Rules and Regulations of BCCI and is a permanent affiliated body of BCCI. Hence, the Odisha Cricket Association cannot take a different stand contrary to the stand taken by the BCCI,” he said.He further admitted that deviation could put OCA’s BCCI membership and grants at risk.