The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has expressed its inability to approve the amended constitution of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) in the absence of the requisite clause that ‘charge-framed’ officials would not be eligible to run for the IOA elections.
In a communication addressed to the suspended IOA on Friday, the IOC Director-General, Christophe De Kepper, has warned that, in case the IOA Constitution was not amended as directed by the IOC before the Executive Board meeting of the IOC on December 10, further action may be taken against India including a proposal to withdraw IOC recognition.
“It is therefore requested that the suspended IOA meet again in a General Assembly and adopt these very last amendments as per the IOC’s requirements,” the letter stressed. The IOC also countered the proposal of the IOA about having another meeting in Lausanne. “All arguments have already been exchanged and heard over the past months. The IOC’s position in this regard is very clear and has no reason to change. The suspended IOA knows exactly what the IOC is expecting.
“In view of this, we do not see any need for this meeting unless it would serve to confirm that the suspended IOA respects and follows the IOC’s requirements. In any case, this meeting should not be used to once again delay the process and the final amendments to the IOA Constitution, which must be successfully completed no later than 10 December 2013,” the communication stated.
“You have a collective responsibility, in particular before the Indian athletes, to resolve this pending issue rapidly and successfully for the general interest of sport in India and beyond any personal interest. The IOC has shown a lot of patience and understanding in this case and will not compromise on the basic principles good governance, ethics and integrity which must now prevail within the IOA and the Olympic Movement in India,” the letter concluded.
A copy of the letter was also sent to the IOC president, Thomas Bach, the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) president, Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah, and the Union Sports Minister, Jitendra Singh.