IOA President vs Secy Gen: Narinder Batra ‘dissolves’ Ethics Commission, Rajeev Mehta re-instates it

The fissures among the many prime officers of the Indian Olympic Association have come out within the open with Secretary General Rajeev Mehta terming President Narinder Batra’s resolution to dissolve the Ethics Commission “illegal”.

Batra and Mehta have been at loggerheads for a while with the IOA president lately making an announcement that he’ll take over a lot of the duties of the secretary common.Mehta had had hit again, saying dealing with of day-to-day affairs of IOA is his job.The newest tussle is on the problem of the time period of the Ethics Commission of the IOA headed by retired justice V Okay Gupta. The Commission was appointed in 2017.Mehta wrote to the Executive Council members, National Sports Federations and state Olympic our bodies that the “dissolving of the IOA Ethics Commission (2017-2021) by the president vide letter dated 19/05/2020 has been found to be illegal and the commission is reinstated”.

“An inquiry on the matter is undertaken by the chairman of the IOA Legal Commission. Issues regarding the Commission/Committees would be discussed in the next meeting of the Executive Council of the IOA,” Mehta wrote.

The IOA Legal Commission is headed by senior vice-president and senior advocate R Okay Anand.

On his half, Batra requested the executive employees to place the letters for document.Mehta claimed that the Annual General Meeting of the IOA held in December 2017 had authorised Batra and himself to nominate/nominate chairman/convenor/ members of the fee and committees and he has not given any consent to new appointments or elimination.

In a separate letter to the members of the IOA Ethics Commission, Mehta stated Batra’s letter to take away them “holds no force of any kind”. He requested the members to disregard the letter (from Batra) and proceed with their job.

Mehta stated a member of the Ethics Commission can solely be faraway from workplace by a call of the Executive Council and in keeping with the Ethics Rules.

The guidelines present for a four-year time period of the Ethics Commission.

Mehta clamed the Ethics Rules had been sought to be modified and he stated “there has been a clear case of breach of trust and mishandling”.

“In the Rules of 2019, the terms of Ethics Commission members is still four years, both in index and in the term of appointment. But the last page is replaced with a different term (of two years; 2017-19),” the Secretary General wrote.

“Once President Batraji signed on the term of current members as four years in the Ethics Rules of 2018, then by no stretch of interpretation can the term of members of Ethics Commission come to an end on May 19, 2020,” Mehta wrote.

Mehta additionally stated that “prima facie act of misdeed in putting together the amended 2019 IOA Ethics Rules is very clear”.

“It needs to be further investigated. I am referring the metter to the chairman of the IOA Legal Commission and an expert in forensic investigation.”The 9 member Ethics Commission additionally has BJP spokesperson and IOA vice-president Sudhanshu Mittal, one other senior vice chairman Anil Khanna and Winter Olympics star Shiva Keshavan.Mittal has objected to the appointment of joint secretary Rakesh Gupta as official Minutes Recorder on Monday, terming it a “brazen act” and “in violation of IOA constitution”.”As President of the IOA, you might be anticipated to observe the provisions of the Constitution and never bask in such illegalities,” Mittal wrote to Batra.