NEW DELHI: Sports minister MS Gill made it clear on Saturday that the elections of Hockey India would be held in a fair manner as per the commitment made and also reiterated his faith in the government’s observer, SK Mehdiretta, who is supervising the process.

When asked about the status of the elections, Gill told TOI: “The ministry’s position is clear. We had made a commitment to FIH president Leonardo Negre that a unified body Hockey India will be in place and that the ad hoc committee of HI would be replaced by a properly elected body well before the World Cup. We have been pushing for this and our observer, SK Mehdiretta, who is a legal expert and has been a key player in the Election Commission, is doing a great job.

“In fact, he played a key role during the BCCI elections in Kolkata when the attempt to do so under a retired judge had failed. He has issued instructions for a secret ballot which will be on the ministry’s website. I’m confident that he will ensure clean, transparent and fair elections.”

On the recent controversy over some states not having got affiliation so far from Hockey India, Gill said: “The elections must have the representation of all states, including all major hockey-playing states. We will ensure that all this is in place.”