Rajasthan elections postponed to March 1

The Supreme Court has ordered that the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA) elections, which were originally scheduled for February 22, be held on March 1. The order comes as a boost to Lalit Modi, the IPL chairman and RCA president, who had sought relief from the apex court on the issue.

Modi, who was close to the previous state administration in Rajasthan, has been facing resistance at the local association from a group of dissidents ever since the government changed hands after an election last year. Local police have also lodged a series of cases against Modi over the last month on various charges, including fraud and forgery.

The dissidents, meanwhile, amended the RCA's constitution with the backing of the state administration and called for elections on February 22. The apex court, however, upheld a plea by Modi who questioned the election process as per the amended constitution and sought the court's intervention to ensure a free and fair election. The court also appointed an independent observer to conduct the elections.

"My stand gets vindicated," Modi told reporters in Mumbai. "All the illegalities done by the other group by changing the constitution have been set aside by the Supreme Court. I'm extremely happy."