Kolkata, Dec 1: Will Jagmohan Dalmiya be staging a comeback to cricket administration after he clears his name from corruption charges levelled against him by the Indian cricket board? The man in a reclining chair pauses for a moment, and the keeping his Mona Lisa-like smile intact, he measures his words and replies,: "In democracy hands count, not the head."

Whatever be the import of his cryptic line, he leaves one wondering, will he or won`t he?

Dalmiya does not want to go any further or clarify what he means by democracy. He won`t talk about court cases he is fighting with the cricket establishment over the alleged misappropriation of millions of rupees from the 1996 World Cup accounts.

Whatever the court verdict may be, for now Dalmiya appears at peace with himself. He is enjoying his forced sabbatical from cricket administration and is looking after his vast business empire.

"One day I shall speak to you all, but for the moment I don`t want to say anything," says the 67-year-old former board president, whose family originally came from Sikar district in Rajasthan before moving to Bhiwani in Haryana and finally settling down in Kolkata.

Will he one day write a book to give his side of the controversies surrounding him? "No need of that. I have got many offers from publishers, but no ..." he says rather casually.

If Dalmiya were to write an autobiography it will ruffle many feathers and open up old wounds. He will have a lot to say on several issues, for instance how the ICC, with England and Australia still enjoying veto power, was forced to allot the 1987 World Cup to India and Pakistan, and then how the subcontinent snatched the 1996 World Cup.

Also, did he play a major role in selling the television rights allegedly to his friends? He may also have something to reveal on signing ICC`s Playing Nations Agreement on Indian Board`s behalf.

For the present Dalmiya is keeping the cards close to his chest, leaving everyone guessing. His opponents will always be wary of him. "You never know what Dalmiya is up to," say his friends as well as his foes.

One thing is for sure, you cannot keep the only son of the late Arjun Prasad Dalmiya away from cricket.

Friday evening, Dalmiya looked relaxed after a few business meetings at his old office building at Shakespeare Sarani. He sipped coffee as he watched, rather keenly, the live telecast of the opening match in the Indian Cricket League (ICL) on the LCD TV hanging on the wall in front of him.

ICL is another issue on which Dalmiya doesn`t want to speak on the record, but off the record he is quite forthcoming, not only on Subhash Chandra`s ICL but also on a host of other cricket-related issues.

From occupying the highest post in world cricket, the chair of the ICC president at the revered Clock Tower at Lord`s, London, to kneeling down before Hanuman, the Hindu god of strength, he is a man of strength and faith and has experienced it all.And it is obvious when you look at the two photographs of Hanuman hanging on the wooden-wall of his first-floor office and the enlarged pictures showing him presenting the 1999 World Cup trophy to Australia captain Steve Waugh as well as the opening ceremony of that tournament, both at Lord`s.

Another photograph, of his father, on the wall behind him perhaps evokes more nostalgia and emotion from him. It was the sudden demise of Arjun Prasad in his office that forced Dalmiya to give up his cricket and take over reins of the business.

"I was a wicket-keeper and a decent batsman at the university level. I once scored 96 or something against the Calcutta Sports Journalists Association at the Eden Gardens," he says with a twinkle in his eyes.`