New Delhi: The International Olympic Committee (IOC) might go ahead with the suspension of Indian Olympic Committee (IOA) because the latter has failed to adhere to the guidelines laid by the IOC for the conducting the upcoming elections on December 5th.
The proposal for suspension of the Olympic body will be put before the IOC Executive Board meeting on December 4th and 5th.
“It is hereby confirmed that a proposal for suspension of the IOA will be presented to the IOC Executive Board at its next meeting on 4-5 December 2012, based on Rules 27.9 and 59.1.4 of the Olympic Charter,” IOC told V.K Malhotra, acting president of IOA in a letter.
The IOC Director General Christophe de Kepper has warned IOA of strong actions if they do not rectify the problem with immediate effect.
“It was indeed clearly mentioned that a proposal for suspension of the IOA would be submitted to the next IOC Executive Board meeting on 4-5 December 2012 if the situation is not rectified with immediate effect and the IOC is given clear and written guarantees to ensure that the IOA’s elections can be held strictly on the basis of the Olympic Charter and the IOA’s constitution.,” the letter said.
The apex body also rejected Indian body’s request to send international delegates to resolve the matter and said it was something that had to be solved by the Government authorities and IOA, but they could not find an acceptable solution due to lack of co-operation between them.
“The IOC invited the IOA and the Government representatives to a meeting in Lausanne in June 2010 and, since then, has been continuously available to work constructively in order to find an acceptable solution. These efforts have, however, been unsuccessful due to the regrettable lack of cooperation from the IOA and the Government authorities, which has led to the current situation. Consequently, the IOC and OCA will not send delegates to India at this stage.”
“From your letter of 26 November, we came to the conclusion that the IOA and the Government authorities are unable to rectify the situation in order for the IOA elections to be conducted in line with the Olympic Charter and the IOA Constitution, as required by the IOC. It is therefore extremely surprising and – once again contradictory - that you continue to move ahead with the IOA’s election process. The IOA and OCA have already made it clear that such “election process” – if it is held - will not be recognised by the IOC and OCA,” said the letter.
By Indian Sports News Network