Talks between IHF, HI fail again

Uthra G Chaturvedi

For almost a year, hopes of the administrative wrangling in Indian hockey getting resolved had been periodically raised only to fall apart. On Thursday, the three concerned parties —Hockey India, Indian Hockey Federation and the FIH — met again, and the result was no different.

According to sources, International Hockey Federation (FIH) president Leandro Negre and CEO Kelly Fairweather, in the city since Monday, had arrived to work out a compromise formula.

In fact, sources in both HI and IHF claimed that a solution had been worked out, by which while the president and treasurer in the new arrangement would be from the Indian Hockey Federation, the Secretary General —Narinder Batra — would be from HI with other members to be co-opted by September. By then, the assimilation process would be completed at state levels before elections to the new national body. A new six-member committee — two from HI, IHF and FIH each — was also decided to be formed, to oversee and finalise the modalities of settlement between the rival bodies.

But things changed for the worse during the final round of meeting on Thursday night, forcing the idea to be abandoned. While HI was represented by Batra, IHF president RK Shetty was also present during the meetings. But even though neither of the parties was willing to come on record about the meeting, sources accept that the breakdown in talks happened after HI stuck to its demand of the IHF merging into it while the latter was more keen on both organisations being dissolved and a new body being formed.

Batra claimed there was no development to comment on whereas Shetty also refused to say anything, saying he would comment only once there was a solution, which as of now was not in sight.