National Sports Federations want to ensure less government interference on sports bodies
The National Sports Federations (NSFs) have decided to side with the Indian Olympic Association to save their autonomy from being interfered by the national sports code. The Narinder Batra-led IOA has also asked Badminton Association of India president Himanta Biswa Sarma to continue in his post.
Last week, the apex court of the land issued a petition to implement the Lodha Committee reforms in the Badminton Association of India as well and also asked to remove ministers like Himanta Biswa Sarma as office-bearers of the body. The petition came as a severe challenge to the autonomy of the different sporting associations and that’s why the NSFs gathered for a meeting yesterday to ensure their individuality.
IOA also understood the problems concerning the need to reduce the hyper-activism of the government, which also leads to various PILs challenging the election of NSF office-bearers.
Keeping an eye on the same, IOA president Batra decided to form an eight-member committee to organise talks with the government ministry so that they ensure a smooth relationship between two parties. The committee consists of Batra himself as the chairman, and members like RK Anand, Randhir Singh, Rajeev Mehta, Tarlochan Singh, Anandeshwar Pandey, Anil Khanna, and Sudhanshu Mittal.
“There’s a general feeling among the NSF presidents and secretary generals, who attended the meeting, that the working attitude of the ministry and the Sports Authority of India (SAI) is not very forthcoming towards the NSFs. The ministry wants to curtail the NSFs’ autonomous status through the sports code. The members felt that instead of being the two wheels of the same cart, we should move together,” a senior IOA official, who was part of the gathering told TOI.
The members also discussed the PIL which challenged the BAI election in which Assam’s health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma was chosen as the president. The PIL stated that it is illegal that Sharma is enjoying the status of a minister and the president of a sports body and the PIL forced the Supreme Court to bring out the petition.