KPS Gill turns down merger proposal
NEW DELHI: Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) chief advisor KPS Gill on Friday launched a scathing attack on Hockey India (HI) and the sports ministry, saying the IHF cannot merge with HI which has “corrupt” people and who “conspired” to suspend it.
Gill, however, said he was open to the formation of an unified body, but HI should merge with IHF and keep “corrupt” people out of the new federation. Gill also trained his guns on HI secretary general Narinder Batra, who is also the treasurer of the Delhi and District cricket Association. “He is better off serving cricket,” he said.
Gill said he has been asking the government to work out a merger since the Delhi High Court lifted the IHF’s suspension last May. “(IHF president) RK Shetty and Mr Batra were asked to prepare a joint document. We had rejected it. Later on, when the sports ministry called both the parties, their document had 10 points from what Mr Batra proposed.”
Reacting to Gill’s allegations, Batra said Shetty had come to his office where they prepared the joint statement and went together to present it to the sports ministry. “In fact while making the statement, Shetty spoke to Gill three times from my office,” Batra told TOI.
About Gill’s remarks, the DDCA official said: “he should leave that to me. I am under 70 and have the privilege to take a decision on it.”