19th July 2005: It is against the trend but a good news for the few interested in hockey administration. The Indian Hockey Federation, not known for any administrative acumen or legal nicety, has recently sent minutes of both Executive Committee and Annual General Meeting. One might ask what is new in this, but chroniclers of Indian hockey would vouchsafe it’s certainly against the known trait of the IHF headed by sound-byte-delight KPS Gill.

When an Executive Meeting took place at Chandigarh in 1998, two important decisions were taken. One, to ratify all the decisions taken by the President in the past three years! The second, to send minutes of IHF meeting within a month from holding it. The second decision was made after members — some of them surprisingly were genuinely concerned with the game of hockey unlike nowadays — brought the attention of the House to the fact that minutes of previous three meetings have not been circulated!!

Against the backdrop, due to what can decisively said as the ‘Batra Impact’, the IHF has sent minutes of February EC and AGM and now the minutes for notorious Kolkata EC and AGMs.

It is clear now how a former player, Gurbux Singh, played vital role in election of IHF. He was made first Chairman of the Sub Committee that framed rules and regulations for the IHF election ‘as IHF Constitution is silent on certain issues’. On accepting his recommendation, he was made the Returning Officer too. In effect, `he will prepare a detailed report regarding the election and submit the same as and when directed by the Court, along with the Resutls of the elections. The said Report as well as the results will thereafter be made part of the minutes of the AGM’.

The minutes often quotes objections and observations of Batra, but by and large names you and I never come across, but are legal part of the electoral college, proposed and seconded, many things that toed the line of the powers that be.

Interestingly but not unexpectedly, `the members regretted that Shri Batra, Sr. Vice President had filed uncalled for litigation against the Federation and office bearers in the Delhi High Court, because of which the Federation is being made to incur unnecessary expenses’.

In the meeting, as per the minutes now available with stick2hockey.com, `Gill mentioned the fondness of certain senior office bearer to go to the television channels and press which was adversely affecting the prestige and reputation of the Federation. In spite of the General Body having taken strong exception to practice, the Senior Office Bearer was still continuing with his attempts malign the Federation as well as the Officer bearers through the Media’.

Against what has been observed in the history of IHF, the IHF president Gill observed in the EC meeting that ‘the election of Indian Hockey Federation have always been smooth’.

Who will remind him of what happened at the Bhopal Railways station in 1994, why then Chief Minister Digvijay Singh had to intervene, then two journalists had to be beaten in open day light a day after the election and Gill had to go to the Stateman newspaper office to tender an apology.

Of course Gill was talking to his electoral college, believe me, most of them have nothing to do with past or in the know of what transpires in the hockey scene at present. To prove this, one can quote Bombay Hockey Association’s new Secretary Kehar Singh’s oft repeated plea in the AGM: “IHF should de-recognise all institutional representations in the IHF to improve the State hockey”. Hold your breath now.

Now I can’t resist from asking, ‘You will give nowkree to all players, Kehar?’

One things that confuses is, Gill’s assertion that this `AGM is held under unique circumstances and only time will tell the significance of it’

Let us wait.
A s2h Special