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IOA president Usha names panel on BFI poll delay
Inclusion of two IOA EC members in fact-finding panel indicates possible truce between Usha and board members
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New Delhi: Indian Olympic Association president PT Usha has formed a committee to ascertain reasons for the delay in holding the Boxing Federation of India (BFI) elections and suggest a roadmap for “fair and timely elections”.
Interestingly, Usha has named IOA treasurer Sahdev Yadav as chairperson of the panel and included executive council member Bhupender Singh Bajwa in it. Usha and the IOA EC have been at loggerheads over the appointment of CEO Raghuram Iyer and other administrative issues. It has resulted in a long-standing stalemate in IOA, hampering its governance.
The panel was set up on Friday after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) raised concerns over governance issues in IOA during a meeting with the Indian delegation in Lausanne to discuss India’s 2036 Olympics bid. Its composition could be the first signs of a truce between Usha and the EC. Advocate Payal Kakra is the other member of the panel. A copy of the IOA letter is with HT.
The union sports ministry requested Usha to “device a mechanism providing a suitable way forward in consultation with World Boxing to ensure elections are held at the earliest in accordance with the National Sports Code, 2011 and bye laws of BFI.” HT reported on the ministry’s letter issued on July 5.
“The term of the current Executive Committee of the BFI ended on Feb 2 and fresh elections have not been conducted since,” Usha said in the IOA office order.
The committee will examine the “current legal and administrative status” of BFI and assess the implications of the delay on the governance and functioning of boxing in India.
The panel will “recommend necessary actions, including but not limited to, engagement with World Boxing and suggest a roadmap for conduct of fair and timely elections.” The panel has been asked to submit its report in a week.
The ministry in its letter to Usha had pointed out that the issues related to BFI were still unresolved and the prolonged delay in the elections has “created an administrative void in BFI, which is affecting governance and development of boxing in the country”.
The BFI election was scheduled on March 28 but could not be held due to many court cases filed by different affiliates challenging the process. Former union minister Anurag Thakur entered the fray for BFI president’s post against incumbent Ajay Singh, the SpiceJet chairman. World Boxing on April 7 formed an interim panel headed by Singh for a period not exceeding 90 days to oversee boxing administration in the country.
WB on July 7 extended the tenure of the interim committee to ease the participation of Indian boxers in the upcoming domestic and continental events while urging the panel to initiate and complete the electoral process by August 31.
Usha met WB president Boris van der Vorst in Lausanne on June 30 and the latter called it a “productive and insightful discussion” on Indian boxing.
