It may put India’s return to the Olympic fold in jeopardy but the suspended IOA’s General Body Meeting here on Sunday is all set to ignore the IOC’s directive to bar charge-sheeted officials from contesting elections through constitutional amendments.
The defiant move may put a spanner on the country’s return to the Olympics, but IOA officials have asserted that amendments to bar corruption-tainted officials cannot be carried out as Indian law permits charge-sheeted persons to contest even Parliamentary elections.
The IOC had on August 15 asked the IOA to amend its constitution incorporating the provisions to bar corruption-tainted persons from contesting elections proposed to be held next month. It had subsequently warned of further action if the amendments were not carried out on Sunday’s General Body Meeting.
But the IOA, led by Abhey Singh Chautala and Lalit Bhanot, who were elected president and Secretary General in the December 5 last elections, which were not recognised by the IOC, has remained defiant.
The likes of Bhanot and V.K. Verma, who were charge-sheeted in the 2010 Commonwealth Games scam along with former IOA chief Suresh Kalmadi, would not be able to contest elections if the anti-graft amendments are incorporated.
It is learnt that majority of the IOA officials are opposed to the amendments proposed by the IOC and tomorrow’s GBM may well turn out to be a mere forum where officials have a general discussion without taking any decision.
“The General Body is the highest decision making body of the IOA and it’s competent to take whatever decision the House agrees to. As of now most of the members are not in favour of several provisions proposed by the IOC,” a top IOA official told PTI.
“We may discuss the amendments proposed by the IOC but a decision is unlikely. But everything will be decided by the GBM. Let us see what happens”, he said.
