Political leaders on Monday joined the chorus against Indian Hockey Federation President KPS Gill and demanded his removal in the wake of India's failure to qualify for the Beijing Olympics.
CPI Member of Parliament Gurudas Dasgupta was the most vociferous in his demand for Gill's head, saying it was high time that he was "thrown out" from his post.
"It's a matter of shame that we could not qualify for the Olympics. I know that there have been a number of complaints against the IHF President. There is nobody in the country to look after the sport," he said.
On whether Gill should resign from his post, Dasgupta said, "I do not want him to resign. I want him to be thrown out, just to be kicked out."
Fellow CPI leader D Raja said, "It's a matter of shame that not only in hockey, the second most populated country is not competent enough in other sports as well."
"(There is need to) evolve a comprehensive sports and games policy so that all sports and games are promoted equally and money allocated adequately," he said.
"(There is need to) evolve a comprehensive sports and games policy so that all sports and games are promoted equally and money allocated adequately," he said.
Meanwhile, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, who is on the tour of Orissa, said he received several complaints about the "unfair" selection process prevailing in hockey.
"I went to a tribal academy for hockey players and one of the biggest complaints was that the selection process is unfair and the players who are actually good do not get access to the facilities," he said.