Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) secretary Dilsher Khanna has resigned from his post. Khanna, who was also the team manager during the Indian cricket team’s historic T20 World Cup triumph in the US and West Indies last year, submitted his resignation in an official letter sent to PCA president Amarjeet Mehta. Khanna had become the PCA secretary in 2022.
“Yes, I have resigned from the post of PCA secretary,” Khanna confirmed the development while talking with The Indian Express.
“On a personal note, it was a privilege of a lifetime that I was the team manager for the Indian T20 World Cup winning men’s cricket team in 2024. That memory will stay with me forever. However, currently due to my personal reasons, I hereby resign as honorary secretary of the Punjab Cricket Association with immediate effect,” a copy of the letter which is in possession with The Indian Express states.
Khanna, 33, an alumnus of Doon School and Delhi University and also a certified pilot, was elected as PCA secretary in 2022 with former cricketer Gulzar Inder Singh Chahal being elected as PCA president in the association’s Annual General Meeting.
Chahal had resigned four months after his election with reports of irregularities during his term coming to fore with former cricketer and Rajya Sabha MP Harbhajan Singh too accusing Chahal of being involved. Bathinda hotelier Amarjeet Mehta was elected its new president in February 2023.
During Khanna’s three-year tenure, PCA saw the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh PCA International Stadium at Mullanpur being completed fully and hosting Indian Premier League (IPL) matches in 2024. His stint also saw Punjab winning five national titles apart from the PCA’s introduction of Sher-e-Punjab T20 Cup.
The Punjab association has also seen the likes of Shubman Gill, Arshdeep Singh, Abhishek Sharma, and Ramandeep Singh apart from others playing for the Indian cricket team in recent years.
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Khanna was also awarded with a commendation certificate by Punjab Governor and UT Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria in a UT Administration function on Independence Day last year. Earlier this year, Khanna was also appointed as a member of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) committee by the BCCI.
In 2017, industrialist Rajinder Gupta was elected as PCA president with R P Singla elected as secretary before he was re-elected to the post in 2019 with advocate and former cricketer Puneet Bali elected as PCA secretary. Before his nomination in 2019, Gupta had offered to resign but was chosen as PCA president months later.
Gupta had resigned as the PCA president in 2022 followed by Chahal being elected as PCA president. As per BCCI constitution in line with the Supreme Court ruling, there is a nine-year tenure limit for any officer bearer, which can be served either entirely at state association, BCCI level or a combination of both. There is also a ruling of serving a three-year cooling off period after two consecutive terms of three-year each.
