Delhi HC quashes de-recognition of IHF
Nirnimesh Kumar
NEW DELHI: In a major relief to the president of the Indian Hockey Federation (IHF), K.P.S Gill, the Delhi High Court on Friday quashed the decisions of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and the Union Sports Ministry disaffiliating and de-recognising the IHF.
The court held the IHF’s suspension and disaffiliation announced by the IOA in 2008 and 2009 respectively, and the temporary withdrawal of recognition followed by de-recognition passed by the ministry in 2008 and 2009 respectively as illegal, saying that the actions were arbitrary and against the principles of natural justice.
Fallout of ‘sting’
The IOA had, in April, 2008 suspended the governing council of the IHF and appointed in its place an ad hoc body to take care of the affairs of hockey in the country, following a ‘sting’ operation conducted by a private television channel on the IHF Secretary, K. Jothikumaran.
The IOA had later also withdrawn IHF’s affiliation. Thereafter, the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports had endorsed IOA’s decision and de-recognised the IHF following a similar stand taken by the International Hockey Federation (FIH) which wanted a uniform body of men and women’s federations to run the game in India.
The IHF had challenged the decisions of the IOA and the Government on the ground that it was not given an opportunity to defend itself.
While quashing the three decisions, Justice S. Muralidhar also imposed costs of Rs. 10,000 each on the Ministry and the IOA and directed the two to pay the amounts to the petitioner within four weeks.
Referring to an order by a Single Bench of this Court directing the Ministry to undertake a detailed inquiry into the functioning of the IHF last year, Justice Muralidhar said: “There was… an opportunity for the ministry to have undertaken an enquiry into the working of the federation and then issued, if necessary, a show cause notice listing out the irregularities, if any, detected during such enquiry and elicited the response of the IHF. That would have enabled the ministry to avoid the charge of arbitrariness as is now being laid at its doorstep.
“Unfortunately, for over two years now the petitioner IHF has continued to remain under an illegal suspension, followed by an illegal disaffiliation and an illegal de-recognition. This situation calls for a restitutive correction,” Justice Muralidhar ruled.
‘Not too late’
Advising the Ministry to put its house in order, Justice Muralidhar said: “This court believes that even now it is not too late for the Ministry to get its act together and set things in order with the cooperation of both the IHF and the IOA and any other body that may have been set up. Instead of again panicking about the revival of the IHF, it requires to be seen how the interests of hockey in India can be best served.”
The IOA had initially formed an ad hoc body and then given its recognition to a registered body named Hockey India (HI), which also gained recognition from the Union Government and the FIH.
Last March, the FIH stated that if HI did not hold elections by May 31, it would face de-recognition and India could be barred from all international tournaments.
On a different front altogether, the IOA can have some consolation from the latest verdict of the court. Justice Muralidhar has, in his order, mentioned the importance of autonomy of sports bodies, a topic that has been in the headlines in recent weeks because of the controversy over Government guidelines for National Sports Federations (NSFs) and the IOA.
“Sports bodies have to have a degree of autonomy with the government playing the role of an effective regulator. They must be allowed to function in a democratic manner with persons really interested in developing the game participating in its affairs.
“The knee-jerk reaction to losses at international events, which are inevitable in competitive events, and looking for persons to blame, cannot be conducive to a healthy development of any national sport,” the court said.