The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) condones the sad demise of its former Vice-President and a former IPL Governing Council member, Shri Arun Jaitley. A remarkable statesman, Mr Jaitley was a passionate cricket follower and will always be remembered as one of the most able and respected cricket administrators.

During his long tenure as the President of the Delhi & District Cricket Association, he brought about a tremendous change in the cricketing infrastructure. A close friend of the cricketers, he always stood by them, encouraged them and supported them in their quest for excellence. The BCCI shares the pain and grief of the Jaitley family and prays for the departed soul.

Arun Jaitley was admitted in the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) since August 29 after complained of restlessness and breathlessness. He was on life support in the past few days and breathed his last around 12 PM on August 24, Saturday.

Jaitley’s contribution

Arun Jaitley was closely associated with Indian cricket for a long time. He was the vice-president of the BCCI as well as the former member of the Indian Premier League (IPL) Governing Council. Moreover, he served as the President of the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) for 13 years and a lot of player from Delhi made it to the national team during his tenure.

Virender Sehwag spoke highly of Arun Jaitley in a series of tweets and pointed out how he used to listen to the needs of the players and solve their problems. He also expressed grief over Jaitley’s demise and paid tribute to the former Finance Minister of India. Another top Delhi cricketer Gautam Gambhir termed Arun Jaitley as a ‘father figure’ and paid tribute to him.

Even the other current and former Indian cricketers took to Twitter to pay condolences to Arun Jaitley after he passed away on Saturday.