More Support Coming for Move to Oust Indian Olympic Association Chief

At least 10 National Sports Federations and six state Olympic units have come out in the open in demanding a No Confidence Motion against Indian Olympic Association president N Ramachandran by calling a Special General Meeting.

National Rifle Association of India, Fencing Association of India, Indian Rugby Football Union, Ice Hockey Association of India and Ice Skating Association of India were among the latest NSFs to demand ouster of Ramachandran from the top job.

Basketball Federation of India headed by K Govindraj also demanded Ramachandran's ouster but it is not clear whether his faction is recognised by the IOA or not.

"As per Rule VIII (i) and (ii) of IOA Constitution, we Badminton Association of India are moving a vote of no confidence against Mr N Ramachandran, President IOA. We request you to convene the Special General Meeting (SGM) of IOA at the earliest to discuss on the vote of no confidence against Mr N Ramachandran, president IOA," the NSFs wrote to the IOA president, secretary general and treasurer in almost identically-worded letters.

Hockey India, Badminton Association of India, Modern Pentathlon, Bowling Federation of India and Handball Federation of India have already demanded 'No Confidence Motion' against Ramachandran by calling a Special General Meeting of the IOA.

Among the state Olympic Associations, the latest to join the move to oust Ramachandran were Madhya Pradesh, Chandigarh and Karnataka. The state Olympic Associations of Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh have already supported the move.

There were also indications that the state Olympic associations of Maharashtra, Tripura, Andaman and Nicobar have also joined the chorus to oust Ramachandran but it is yet to be officially announced.

According to the IOA constitution, a No Confidence Motion against the president, secretary general, treasurer and other executive council members can be passed if two-third majority of the members are present and voting.

The quorum for such a meeting will have to be three-fourths of the total strength of the IOA General Body entitled to vote.

A SGM may be convened at any time by IOA president or the Executive Council or on a written requisition signed by presidents and secretaries of not less than 50 per cent member units within one month from the date of receipt by the president of the said requisition.

If the president of IOA fails to convene a meeting, then the requisitionists can convene the meeting under arrangements made directly by them.

The IOA General Body has 183 votes in total -- three each for NSFs and two each for state Olympic bodies. The IOA has 39 NSFs but a few of them are under dispute due to having rival factions. It has 35 state Olympic units.

The infighting among the top brass of the IOA, which came out of a 14-month suspension only last year, got exposed just days after International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach's first visit to the country after taking over as IOC chief in 2013.

In his one-day whirlwind visit on April 27, Bach had called for unity among the IOA members so that they can work together for the betterment of Indian sports and sportspersons. He has also laid to rest the speculation that India may bid for 2024 Olympic Games.

Discontent against Ramachandran had been brewing for quite some time now with many members feeling that the IOA chief was running the show all by himself without consulting other officials.

Ramachandran's move to keep IOA office bearers, including secretary general Rajiv Mehta, in the dark before he visited Bach in Lausanne, Switzerland, along with sports secretary Ajit Sharan also did not go down well with some members.