Hockey India conflicts ruining hockey: Aslam
Kusum Arora
Tribune News Service
Conflicts in Hockey India ruined hockey and brought a gradual downfall of the game leading to the poor performance of Indian hockey team at the recently-concluded World Cup in Delhi.
“It is not the players who lack the sporting spirit, rather the enemy within Hockey India, which has paralysed the entire system. The murky conflicts and politics among senior officials have led to this situation. Even players should think twice before supporting such corrupt officials”, said former Olympian Aslam Sher Khan who was here to attend a local function.
Talking to the media about the upcoming Hockey India elections he said that the system is ailing due to the lack of any senior hockey player in the federation. He also said the elections should be held in a free and a fair manner to avoid further downfall of the sport.
Also hitting out at Union Minister for Sports M.S. Gill, he said, “The minister should ensure that a rule or a law be constituted, which prohibits the entry of corrupt officials in Hockey India and senior players get a chance to have their say for the actual revival of the game”.
At the same time there was no dearth of money as well, he maintained. “Infact during the World Cup, Hero Honda gave Rs 20 crore, SAIL gave Rs 8 crore, while an equal amount was raised through advertisements”, he added.
Further talking about the protest raised by the hockey players ahead of the World Cup he said, “It was a good sign that the players raised their voice against the officials. The boys went public only when they felt that the situation went out of their control”, he added.
Aslam also added that he would support Director Sports, Punjab, Pargat Singh if he contests for the post of president of Hockey India