Sports Ministry may withdraw support from Hockey India

BANGALORE: There’s fresh trouble ahead for Hockey India officials. The Union sports ministry on Friday hinted that it may withdraw the conditional recognition given to the interim body and instead look for ‘people with credibility’ to run the show until the elections. Of course, it will take this step after the World Cup is over.

In apparent retaliation at Hockey India secretary Narinder Batra’s outburst on Monday, when he criticised the sports ministry, the ministry said it was dealing with an ‘edifice that is showing too many cracks’ of late.

“What was Hockey India before we gave it recognition? It was our approval that catapulted it into prominence. At that time, we sincerely believed that the officials would get the game back on the rails and work towards a fair, democratic election,” ministry sources told TOI.

“But what has happened in the past two weeks has raised serious doubts in our minds regarding its credibility as well as its ability to put in place a robust federation to govern the game in the country.

“Let’s make one fact clear: at no point of time would we compromise on our intention to have a body with unquestionable legitimacy at the helm.”

The ministry is particularly disturbed by the mudslinging in recent days and the growing complaints from member associations which are yet to get official recognition.

What has also been irksome is the increasing number of litigations that have sprung up around the country against Hockey India – court cases in Mumbai, Kerala, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh – which has completely derailed the affiliation process.

“We respect the autonomy of the sports federations. At the same time, they should not forget that they are dependent on the government for infrastructure, training facilities or consummables. Hence, they have to address the concerns we have to protect the national game. That, sadly, has not happened. Of late, the situation has deteriorated. Take the affiliation process, for example, it has fallen like a pack of cards.”

Having said that, the government is in no mood to precipitate matters what with the World Cup round the corner.

“But we will definitely swing into action once the event is over. Hockey is too precious a game for it to be orphaned. This uncertainty is detrimental to the game. We will weigh our options, work in conjunction with the international hockey federation (FIH) and the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and do everything to see that a worthy interim body is in place,” the sources said.

Another critical factor which changed the ministry’s mindset was the shrinking officialdom in Hockey India. “The president and secretary are gone. Among those left, a few are unwilling to continue. And there are others who are not connected to hockey. As such, the situation has transformed substantially, compelling a quick review of the matter.”

One option before the government is to get the existing hockey bodies (state units) to choose their representatives and form a governing council. It would obviously mean going back to the Indian Hockey Federation days but the government sees no harm in it as long as the process throws up “a credible and responsible body which is ready to prepare a transparent road map for the elections.”

What if the new committee is forced to start from scratch? “Nothing is lost so long as a more credible and effective body is in place,” the source said.