Randhir urges IOA chief to revive Ethics Committee

The disbanding of the Ethics and some other committees of the IOA by its General Body recently today came under sharp criticism from its Secretary General Randhir Singh who urged the acting president to revive and ratify them without further delay.

Randhir said the disbanding of the Arbitration Court and Ethics Committee will attract International Olympic Committee's ire and will bring bad name to the country, already sullied by the Commonwealth Games corruption scandal.

"The scrapping of these bodies will bring bad name to the country. India's image has already been sullied by Commonwealth Games scandals. It is unfortunate that people who run sports don't understand the implications of such a move" he told PTI.

"We amended the Constitution in accordance with IOC rules and some people want to scrap everything. I am sorry to say this cannot happen. It was not a majority decision of the General Body," he said.

"The IOA acting president (V K Malhotra) of the IOA should immediately ratify these bodies. He has powers to do so," Randhir, also an IOC member, said.

Randhir rued that the scrapping had been done due to lack of understanding of rules by some members and said it can have serious repercussions.

"I am sorry to say that some people do not know the rules and don't know how sports is being run. These people have refused to learn from past mistakes," he said.

Sources said that the IOC can even consider banning of the IOA for scrapping Ethics Committee and Court of Arbitration.

"If the IOA president does not ratify the committee and the court, the IOC is bound to take up the issue of disbanding," a source said.