By Kennedy D’Silva
Pointing out that the modified clause brings tenure regulation at sports federations in line with that of the IOC, the ministry said, “The above mentioned tenure limit shall come into operation with immediate effect for all elections conducted henceforth.”

“However, in the case of existing office-bearers who are attracting the above restrictions, but were duly elected to their posts, and are currently serving their tenures, the tenure limit will be enforceable only after the expiry of the current tenure.”
To defend the arising situation the IOA chief Kalmadi chaired a special general meeting, in which he got unanimous support in his opposition of the guidelines by member units comprising state Olympic associations and sports federations. The guidelines put a cap of 12 years for the president’s post of sports bodies. They also limit the tenure of secretaries and treasurers to two consecutive terms of four years each, while fixing a retirement age of 70.
Apart from refusing to accept the guidelines and amending their constitution, the general body also proposed that the government should disburse allowance to athletes, that the federations should set up their respective athletes’ federation and that government observers continue on selection panels.
“Members of the general body reiterate that they remain committed to the principles of good corporate governance which they are already practising, including free and fair elections, CAG audit, transparency by making all information available, and clean and professional administration,” said the resolution.
“Members remain committed to their own constitution, statutes of the international federations which alone governs their sport world-wide, and provisions of the Societies Act under which they are registered,” it added.
But though the resolutions were passed smoothly, former sports minister Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa’s tirade against Kalmadi left quite a few red faces around.
“You work like a dictator,” shouted Dhindsa, a representative of the Cycling Federation of India. “This is not as democratic a set up as you claim because you push in your people wherever possible. How is it that none of those recommended by us are ever appointed for important posts?”
Dhindsa, though reiterating that he was with Kalmadi on the ongoing issue, refuted his claim that a meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh earlier this month had been positive.
“The sports ministry has not changed its course of action and we continue to get letters from them asking us to adhere to the guidelines. What does this signify? I think we should get a hint from this regarding what the government’s stance is,” warned Dhindsa.
One thing for sure is that it is not only for power and a clout in the selection process or simply fooling the public that their contributions to society are enormous during general elections, because all these posts are on an honorary basis.
So why is the politician interested in sticking to his chair for decades? We can be hundred per cent sure that there are huge financial gains amounting to not only in lakhs but of late to crores of rupees.
While hosting a mega sports event, some escalation in costs is understandable as new projects get added and the scale of the show is expanded. However, in the case of Delhi’s Commonwealth Games, official cost estimates have gone up by a whopping 525 per cent since the city won the bid in 2003.
Unofficial assessments put the escalation at 1575 per cent more than 15 times the original estimate according to an independent report released on Thursday, which predicts the Games will leave a “severe financial legacy”.
India’s bid document for the Commonwealth Games in 2003 estimated the cost of hosting the event at Rs 1,899 crore. After several revisions the estimates now range from an official figure of Rs 10,000 crore to an astounding assessment of Rs 30,000 crore by independent experts.
A look at the funds spent for the construction and upgrade of stadiums and training venues indicates that the Games are proving to be an expensive affair. The works saw a cost escalation of 2160 per cent over seven years from a meagre Rs 150 crore to a whopping Rs 3,431.4 crore.
Reliable sources say that almost every file needs to go through the hands of these politicians and why should it be? A very simple answer. You know the rule of the day, it’s just about percentages.
(Concluded)