IOA asks govt to recognise election of AITA, JFI chiefs

Indian Olympic Association and Sports Ministry is heading towards a collision course with the IOA today asserting that Anil Khanna and Mukesh Kumar will not demit office as presidents of All India Tennis Association and Judo Federation of India respectively despite the government's decision to invalidate the election of the duo.
In a letter to the Sports Ministry, the IOA said that Khanna and Kumar were elected as presidents of their respective National Sports Federations (NSFs) in accordance with the IOA Constitution and they cannot be asked to demit office.
The IOA asked the government to immediately give recognition to the duo as presidents of their respective NSFs.

"We have advised both AITA and JFI Presidents not to demit office as their elections are in conformity with the Constitution of IOA as well as their respective National Federations. Therefore, you are requested to give recognition to both the office bearers of AITA as well as JFI forthwith," IOA Secretary General Rajiv Mehta said in the letter.
Mehta made it clear that the IOA Constitution was amended in 2013 (during its suspension by the IOC) after a "formal" meeting with the then Sports Secretary but the Ministry had deemed it "unofficial" and recommendatory in nature.
"The stand of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports

that the meeting was informal is something which IOA totally disagree with and resolved in its Annual General Meeting held on 23rd December 2015 that the meeting was formal and IOA Constitution was approved by both IOC and MoYAS," Mehta said.

"Also it was resolved that if office bearers of National Sports Federations are holding office which is in accordance with the IOA Constitution, the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports cannot disturb the position of those office bearers."
Sports Ministry had told AITA and JFI that the election of Khanna and Kumar were not valid under the controversial tenure guidelines of the Sports Code as they did not serve a cooling period of four years before becoming presidents. The government had threatened derecognition of the two NSFs if they do not hold elections for their presidents.

Khanna, also an IOA Treasurer, and Kumar served as secretaries for two consecutive terms before becoming presidents last year.
Remaining defiant, the duo has said that the government has 'wrongly' interpreted the tenure provision and the guidelines of mandatory cooling-off period do not apply to a Secretary becoming a President.
"...Regarding interpretation of Age and Tenure Guidelines of Sports Code being made applicable by the Ministry of Sports to AITA and JFI...We have received the elections of both AITA and JFI Presidents and confirm that these elections are in conformity with the IOA Constitution approved by the IOC and Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.