May 3: The Indian Olympic Association on Monday came out strongly against the sports ministry’s guidelines limiting the tenures of chiefs and office-bearers of National Sports Federations, terming the move “draconian” and lacking “foresight” with the Commonwealth Games just five months away.
A visibly-peeved IOA president Suresh Kalmadi along with the chiefs of various NSFs lashed out at the government’s directive and vowed to do everything to “protect their autonomy”, while addressing a packed media gathering at the CWG Organising Committee headquarters here on Monday.
“At a time when we should be pooling our efforts to see how India could increase its medal count at the CWG, the ministry wants to choke the various national federations who are toiling hard to make the event a success,” Kalmadi said.
“It is a draconian order which questions the very basis of the autonomy of the IOA and the NSFs. We reject the brazen attempt by the sports ministry to challenge our autonomy.
“We will take appropriate steps and we are not backing off. We will do everything to protect our autonomy,” he said.
The IOA chief expressed surprise on the timing of the directive, saying: “The timing of the order has amazed us. We completely disagree with the hostile approach of the ministry on the eve of the meeting of Coordination Commission of the CWG.
“The games are some 150 days away and at this juncture Mr Gill thought it right to issue such an order. I am totally surprised”.
Kalmadi, who himself has been IOA chief for the last 14 years, said that the government did not have the right to de-recognise any of the federations or the IOA.
“‘It is the IOA that sends the team to the Olympics, Commonwealth, Asian and South Asian Games and not the sports ministry. As far as national federations are concerned, they are a state subject and are affiliated and recognised by the International Sports Federations and the IOA,” he said.
Citing the Olympic Charter, Kalmadi warned the ministry that any government interference in the functioning of the IOA would invite the wrath of the International Olympic Committee, which suspended the Kuwaiti Olympic body for the same reason.
Kalmadi also dismissed sports minister M.S. Gill’s assertion that the guideline would help bring transparency.
“As far as transparency is concerned, IOA was brought under RTI (Right To Information) Act by the ministry and we accepted it with a smile because we have nothing to hide. As for elections in NSFs, they have always been conducted in a free and fair manner as per their respective constitutions.
“The sports minister has himself given a letter to the court that all the federations have given their accounts properly and submitted to the Comptroller and Auditor General.
We are subject to CAG audit, file annual Income Tax returns, share our annual report and accounts with Registrar of Societies, while SAI general body have not met for many years,” he said.
The top officials of the affected federations on Monday had a meeting with the IOA before deciding to oppose the move in toto. The sports bodies will decide on their further course of action after IOA’s executive committee meet on May 18.
The IOA have also forwarded the new regulation to the Olympic Council of Asia and International Olympic Council for further response.
“We are expecting a positive reply from them because this rule infringes on the working of the national Olympic committee. It is a serious matter,” IOA secretary general Randhir Singh said.
Badminton Association of India President V.K .Verma said it was “financial blackmail” on the part of the ministry, which issues meagre grants for conducting national championships.
“The sports ministry order seems to suggest that the federations are on crutches financially.
“In fact in every national championship, the money from the ministry is a small amount. For example, out of Rs 50 lakh incurred in national championship for badminton only Rs 1 lakh comes from the ministry,” Verma said.
Meanwhile, Hockey India secretary Narinder Batra attacked Gill on the issue of putting 70 years as the age for retirement from NSFs.
“Charity begins at home and the Sports Minister should step down first as he has already reached that age if he wants to set a precedent for all of us,” he said.
However, in a twist to proceedings Kalmadi along with the other members did not take any question from waiting reporters, saying that the CGF CoCom meeting needed more attention.
Meanwhile, the ministry had cracked the whip on NSF chiefs in order to give an impetus to a transparent and professional management of Indian sports.
The new regulation that came into effect on May 1, limits the tenures of federation presidents to a maximum of 12 years, with or without break, while secretaries or treasurers can serve two terms of four years at a stretch and would have to take a four-year gap before seeking re-election.
According to the directive, the president, secretary and treasurer of any recognised NSF or IOA, shall cease to hold that post on attaining the age of 70 years. Further, the ministry had threatened not to give any financial support to the federations flouting the norms and even slap de-recognition if they did not abide by the guidelines.
The new order is likely to hurt NSF chiefs V.K. Malhotra (archery), Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa (cycling), V.K. Verma (badminton), Capt. Satish K. Sharma (aero club), Jagdish Tytler (judo) and B.S. Adityan (volleyball) among others, who have been occupying their posts for more than a decade.
Interestingly, the “tenure” clause, first issued in 1975, had been kept in “abeyance” since October 11, 2001 due to reluctance on the part of IOA and the NSFs.