Power-hungry Indian Olympic Association officials now have time till October 31 to get things in place, following the world body’s toughened stand on the ethics issue.
On Thursday, the International Olympic Committee refused to lift the suspension on India which is in force since December last, rejecting IOA’s “compromise formula” on the chargesheeted administrators in office.
The IOA’s stubborn stand on the issue — in reply to IOC’s directive to bar chargesheeted persons from contesting elections, the Indian body had proposed sanction be applied only to those who are convicted and sentenced to a jail term of more than two years — has brought embarrassment to the country, and even sports minister Jitendra Singh urged them to look beyond “personal interests” for the sake of athletes.
The IOC, however, has handed another life line to the IOA, asking the latter to “clean up” their act and make necessary constitutional amendments by October 31. It also asked the Indian body to conduct fresh elections by December 15, to return to the Olympic fold.
Giving its “conclusions and decisions” on the IOA’s executive general meeting held in New Delhi last month, the IOC said the key provision of barring individuals — against whom charges have been framed in court — was ignored.
“The IOC is well aware of the difference in the Indian legal system between charge-sheeted persons and charge-framed persons and has never requested that the clause initially proposed applies for charge-sheeted persons.
“Therefore it is reiterated that the initial wording is aimed to apply for anyone charge-framed by a court in India,” IOC director general Christophe de Kepper said in a letter to the IOA.
“...The IOC does fully respect the principle that ‘until proven guilty, one is innocent’. However, what is at stake is the reputation of the Olympic movement which must not be tarnished,” it added.
Urging the IOA to act accordingly, the IOC has set deadlines for the requisite constitutional changes and the fresh elections.
“It is required that the suspended IOA includes the initial wording proposed by the IOC (or a very similar wording which would not dilute the meaning and the expected results) with respect to both charge-framed and convicted individuals.
“This is (a) pre-requisite for the IOC to approve the revised constitution of the IOA. For that purpose, the suspended IOA should meet again in a general assembly no later than October 31 and proceed with the amendments,” it said.
The IOC also made it clear that the age and tenure restrictions it proposed were applicable on not just the president, secretary general and the treasurer but also the entire executive council.