IOA EB to discuss Kalmadi issue

Faced with the threat from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to take action if it does not explain Suresh Kalmadi’s status in the court cases, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) has decided to call a meeting of its Executive Board to discuss the issue.

IOA Acting President Vijay Kumar Malhotra said in a statement that the meeting will be held at the earliest and its decision will be conveyed to the IOC.

“Indian Olympic Association has called the meeting of its Executive Board to discuss the letter received by it from the International Olympic Committee and other important matters,” Malhotra said.

He said he has asked IOA Secretary-General Randhir Singh to fix the date for the meeting as soon as possible.

The decision to convene the meeting comes in the wake of IOC’s letter to Malhotra seeking a report on Kalmadi’s “current and exact situation before the courts of justice”.

The IOC had threatened to refer the case to its Ethics Commission at any moment, should the action taken by the National Olympic Committee does not have a satisfactory implication.
The meeting is also expected to discuss how the report of showcause notice to Kalmadi got leaked in the media.

Anand’s claim

Meanwhile, senior IOA functionary R K Anand claimed that the Ethics Commission’s ‘suspension’ of Kalmadi was known to the apex body’s top brass but was deliberately kept under wraps, a claim which was rejected by the rival faction.

Anand said that acting president Malhotra was in the know of the showcause issued by now disbanded Ethics Commission to Kalmadi and threatened to apprise the International Olympic Committee of the matter.

“I read today news about remarks of certain IOA office bearers regarding mentioning of orders of ethics commission as fabricated. The orders passed by Ethics Commission were to your knowledge. It is at your instance the dispatch was delayed as you wanted the meeting of IOA general assembly to be over,” Anand said in a letter to Malhotra.

“I would like to inform the IOC about these developments as the rules were suggested by them. Let the IOC take such decision as advised by their Ethics Commission and the audacity of certain office bearers to pass comments on senior judges of Supreme Court (who are members of IOA Ethics Commission),” he said.