New Delhi, May 05: A group of top officials of the National Sports Federations (NSFs), led by IOA chief Suresh Kalmadi today met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to seek his intervention over the Sports Ministry’s guidelines to limit the tenures of the various sports administrators.
Kalmadi said the delegation informed Dr Singh about the timing of the directives and claimed the Prime Minister endorsed their view that the Sports Ministry should have waited for the Commonwealth Games to get over before issuing the guidelines.
”We met the PM over the issue of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) autonomy. We did not like the timings of these issues, when the Commonwealth Games are here,” Kalmadi told mediapersons here after the meeting with the Prime Minister at the Parliament.
”The Commonwealth Coordination Committee is here, so this controversy could have been avoided. The issue at this point of time was unwarranted. We don’t want to go on any offensive,” he stated.
Kalmadi led the delegation which also comprised IOA secretary General Randhir Singh and other top bosses of the NSFs.
The IOA chief asserted that the Prime Minister has assured that he will look into the matter to resolve the simmering controversy.
”We have assured the PM that the Commonwealth Games will be a huge success. We conveyed that Gill should not have come out with all these ideas now. He should have come out after the Games, the atmosphere is not right now. The PM has said that he will look into the matter and get back to us,” he added.
On Sunday, the Sports Ministry had announced a new regulation which said that Federation presidents cannot continue for more than 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 4-year gap before they seek a re-election.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) and Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) have already threatened to impose sanctions, including suspension of Indian athletes from participation in international events if the Sports Ministry’s constant interference does not stop.
—-Agencies