Facing a credibility crisis and under pressure to deliver a successful Commonwealth Games next year, Organising Committee Chairman Suresh Kalmadi insists that he was not being sidelined by the Indian government and he sees no reason to step down from his post.
After his public spat with the Commonwealth Games Federation Chief Michael Fennell and CEO Mike Hooper, the Games Organising Committee and the parent body have been on a collision course on organisational issues for the past few months.
Mr. Kalmadi, however, claims that all the issues have been sorted out and he enjoys full support of the Indian government, dismissing suggestion that he was being sidelined in the light of some new appointments in the Organising Committee.
“Let me tell you that the Government is supporting me fully. All the officers have come at my request and I have also asked for a lot of people from Army.
“About 50 people are joining from the Army as well and so we have asked people from public sectors, private sectors and from the Government as well. They will do the work which they are supposed to do. So I am happy with them coming here,” Mr. Kalmadi told Karan Thapar in the ‘Devil’s Advocate’ programme on CNN-IBN channel.
