Roy and Bose to meet IOA chief

Special Correspondent

MUMBAI: Bengal Hockey President, J.B. Roy, and Indian Women’s Hockey Federation secretary, Amrit Bose, will meet the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president Suresh Kalmadi in response to a written invitation (dated June 12, 2009) from the latter, to press for elections in a democratic manner.

The issue is about forming a national hockey body to oversee the management of the game, following the uproar in the wake of IOA’s ad-hoc committee nominating administrators for Hockey India.

Roy and Bose have been authorised by 22 men’s and 20 women’s State hockey units to deal on their behalf with the IOA, Asian Hockey Federation and FIH (world body).

The resolution was adopted during a two-day meeting in Aamby Valley, Lonavala, attended by State hockey representatives. The men and women State units also announced the decision to merge into one body, as per a directive from the world body asking Indian hockey to fall in line with the system prevalent in other hockey-playing nations.

No pre-conditions

“We are going to meet Kalmadi without any pre-condition. We are going to sit and listen to what he has to say,” said IWHF secretary Bose, at a media briefing on Monday.

Gurbux Singh, secretary of Bengal Hockey Association, added: “We have no condition except asking IOA to hold elections in a democratic and open manner, taking all State units into confidence about modalities of the elections. Let the elections decide who will run hockey in India, instead of ad-hoc bodies (IOA ad-hoc hockey committee) creating another ad-hoc body (Hockey India). IOA is the parent body and should be fair in their conduct.”

Roy and Bose will be meeting FIH president Leandro Negre during his India visit on June 25-26. Roy has been in touch with Negre, who has re-confirmed that the most important parameter for FIH to recognise any unified body is that it should be a democratically elected body, according to a media statement released by Roy.

The house unanimously authorised Roy and Bose to take all suitable actions, including forming/merging of new society and court intervention if necessary, the statement further states.

Bose said the FIH would be requested to depute a person to oversee the elections. Roy questioned IOA’s decision to nominate boxing and basketball administrators (A.K. Mattoo and Harish Sharma respectively) in Hockey India.

“If the IOA wants officials from other sports like boxing and basketball to organise hockey in India, should we accept that?” he asked.

Former India captain and ex-national coach, Vasudevan Baskaran pointed out that in the ad-hoc scenario, holding domestic tournaments was tough.

“An elected body is necessary to put domestic hockey in India on track. The Nationals is long overdue.”