India's Olympic hopes in threat as AIBA threatens to bar Indian boxers
Turf wars in India's prime boxing body could ring the death knell for the nation's slim Olympic hopes by the end of the month. The International Boxing Association (AIBA) has warned Boxing India to hold their elections by March, failing which the Indian boxers will be barred from the Rio Olympics.
"AIBA has given us a March 31 deadline and we have to go for the (federation) elections at the earliest. AIBA has clearly and strictly indicated that if we refuse to be civilised and disciplined, then it (AIBA) does not want us in the fold. AIBA has also stated that it will not tolerate any interference from a third party.
“If we fail to meet the deadline this time there will be no Indian boxer at the Olympics, not even under the AIBA flag," Jay Kowli, the former Secretary General of Boxing India, told Times of India.
Kowli met the AIBA officials last month in Manchester, where the world body issued this ultimatum. Indian boxing has been in a mess since AIBA suspended the Indian Boxing Federation (IBF) back in 2012 after they detected manipulation in an election held by the organization. Boxing India, the federation which replaced IBF, was also provisionally suspended in September last year on the same grounds.
Despite the absence of a body, the Indian boxers have been competing under the flagship of the AIBA, however, the world body has now decided to pull the plug on this life support just ahead of the Rio Olympics.
Both the stakeholders of Indian boxing, the ad hoc committee and the coordinating committee, have failed to form a unified body so far. The Chairman of the coordinating committee, Asit Banerjee, has confirmed that both these bodies have agreed to meet on March 9 to discuss on this matter.
"The coordinating committee was formed during the South Asian Games where 18 state units met and drafted the constitution. We gave them seven days to give their opinion but they asked for more time. In fact, we have sent the units a reminder today. We will meet the ad-hoc committee on March 9 and finalise the next meeting of stake holders. We will also send the date, venue and procedure to AIBA for approval.
"We are just an instrument. We are working and everyone knows that the situation is not smooth. It took us two years to make a new federation. But look at what happened to it,” Asit said.None of the Indian boxers have managed to qualify for the Olympics so far, but they will have the chance to do so in the upcoming Asia/Oceania Olympic Qualifying Tournament to be held in China from March 23 to April 3. However, that might still prove to be not enough, if both the committees fail to come to a unified decision on March 9.
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