The terminated Indian Amateur Boxing Federation today got a new lease of life with the International Boxing Association approving the application of Boxing India (The Bout outside the Ring) without specifying the individuals representing the group.
'Boxing India' was, however, the name given to the faction led by former Secretary General P K Muralidharan Raja which had claimed support of 26 out of the 35 states and units that make up the IABF.
Interestingly, 'Boxing India' was also the first to submit a vision document to AIBA after the world body terminated IABF for not holding fresh elections after being suspended in 2012 for possible manipulation in the polls.
"The International Boxing Association (AIBA) Executive Committee (EC) has approved the application of Boxing India (The Bout outside the Ring) as provisional new AIBA member for India until ratification by the AIBA Congress, following recommendations by the AIBA Evaluation Committee," the AIBA said in a statement.
"This latest AIBA EC Decision was officially announced by AIBA President Dr Ching-Kuo Wu in his letter to the President of the India Olympic Association, Mr Narayan Ramachandran," it said.
The AIBA statement did not specify which group of individuals represented 'Boxing India'.
Asked about any such letter, Rakesh Gupta, convener of the IOA-appointed ad-hoc committee to run Indian boxing, simply said he has no information about this.
"We have no information on this," he told PTI.
None of the groups, who had applied to AIBA, were clear about which faction the world body has finally approved.
