CHENNAI: IN an interesting turn of events, Athletics Federation of India (AFI) president Adille Sumariwalla has sent a letter on Saturday to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announcing that he has taken over as the president of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA). The post has been lying vacant since July 18 when former chief Narinder Batra resigned. The new development will challenge the hold of the faction led by secretary general, Rajeev Mehta, and acting president, Anil Khanna.
"I am the president of the IOA now," Sumariwalla told this newspaper on Saturday. "I have been elected by 18 executive council members out of 31 and I have the majority so going by the IOA constitution, I am the president." Sumariwalla, who was a vice president, said that he will be the first Olympian and an Arjuna awardee to head the IOA.
"I sent the letter to inform the IOC that my people have elected me as the president. My objective is simple. Like in the Athletics Federation of India (AFI), I want to bring in good governance with a lot of transparency and accountability. I want to bring in more professionalism."
In the letter to the IOC, he wrote, "the majority members of the IOA Executive Committee vide letters dated July 2022 have co-opted the undersigned to be the President of the IOA till such time as fresh elections to the Executive Council of the IOA are held... 18 Executive Members out of 31, i.e., majority members, in accordance with Clause 11.1.5 of the IOA Constitution, co-opted the undersigned to fill the vacancy for the post of President, IOA."
However, it's easier said than done. Sumariwalla's announcement has been dismissed by the acting president himself. "It will be a violation of Delhi High Court order," Khanna told this newspaper. "How can Adille become the president? I am the acting president as per court directive."
"I have become the acting president after Delhi High Court's directive. And the matter of IOA is in the Supreme Court which has said that the status quo should be maintained for six weeks. I don't know why Mr Adille Sumariwalla is writing this letter now?" asked Khanna.
"I have no problem if the High Court or Supreme Court said that I cannot be the acting president. I will vacate office immediately. But until the matter is in court, status quo must be maintained. I am attending meetings with the sports ministry and other sports organisations as the acting president. We just successfully concluded the Commonwealth Games. And we are on course to conduct the National Games in Gujarat soon.
"We had invited Adille as the vice president of the IOA to give away prizes after the CWG, but he never said that he was the president then. If the letters were signed in July, he could have told us then. I have been trying to resolve the matter. As acting president, I am trying to do good for the IOA and I feel people should not complicate matters. Hope to sort out everything," said Khanna.
While Sumariawalla talked about elections and said that the process will start soon, Khanna said the Delhi High Court had given them 16 weeks time to hold the elections and by that time, it will be done.
On August 16, the Delhi HC had placed the reins of the IOA in the hands of a three-member Committee of Administrators (CoA), "the erstwhile Executive Committee of IOA shall forthwith hand over the charge to the CoA" for day-to-day functioning. The court said that the CoA will have 16 weeks within which the constitution would be amended and elections be held accordingly.
The Karnataka Olympic Association had approached against the appointment of CoA in IOA and the SC stayed the High Court order and deferred the matter by six weeks saying status quo must be maintained until the hearing.
Interestingly, the IOC had been quite critical about the fight between the two factions in the IOA. As reported by this newspaper, it had warned that they sort out their issues amicably and hold elections within weeks or face serious repercussions, including suspension. Something India cannot afford after what the international football federation (AIFF) had done to the All India Football Federation (AIFF). Even the sports ministry had told the court that IOC might suspend India.
Solicitor General, Tushar Mehta, had submitted in court that, “According to the rules of the IOC, representation of a national level body like the IOA by a non-elected body would be treated as a third party interference."