Even before the Board of Control for Cricket in India polls could get underway, election observer T S Krishnamurthy on Tuesday said votes for the three disputed associations of Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Jharkhand/Bihar would be kept in sealed envelopes.

Krishnamurthy said both the valid voters and the disputed factions would vote in these three cases by secret ballot, which would be kept in sealed envelopes.

''It would be produced before the Supreme Court only on or after December 12 to ascertain their validity if the margin of victory for either faction is less than three,'' he said.

This queers the pitch once again for the ruling faction of Jagmohan Dalmiya as two of the three disputed votes were considered to be those of his loyalists.

Also read: Krishnamurthy is BCCI poll observer