Shillong: A recent Financial Irregularities Report from the Meghalaya Cricket Association (MCA) has revealed that a severe administrative deadlock is responsible for delayed salary payments to staff and support personnel. The report explicitly rejects claims that association president James P.K. Sangma is to blame, labelling those accusations as a misinformation campaign driven by vested interests.
The standoff stems from a March 7, 2026, meeting where the Apex Council moved to tighten financial controls following reports of unauthorised spending. Council members reached a consensus that the president and treasurer should serve as the exclusive signatories for all bank accounts. Although the council signed a formal resolution, the bank requires the honorary secretary to sign as well. The report alleges that the secretary has failed to sign, effectively blocking the release of funds.
While the president and treasurer attempted to sign cheques for staff immediately after the meeting, the process remained incomplete without the secretary's cooperation. The association aims to implement these measures to improve transparency, citing previous large-scale financial discrepancies. Addressing the impact of the ongoing conflict, president Sangma noted that the current environment is untenable for the organisation, stating that "financial mismanagement and unchecked leakages have adversely affected the functioning of the association, including the disbursement of district grants and staff salaries."
The report highlights that the internal power struggle has left players and employees as victims of the financial freeze. By looking at the successes of cricket associations in states like Nagaland, Sikkim, and Jammu and Kashmir, the report calls for an immediate resolution to the impasse to ensure that staff members receive their outstanding pay and the association can return to normal operations.
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