Sports Ministry lifts ban on IOA

New Delhi [India], Jan. 13 (ANI): The Sports Ministry on Friday decided to revoke the suspension of deemed recognition of Indian Olympic Association (IOA) with immediate effect in the light of the corrective action taken by them in reversing its earlier decision making tainted Abhay Singh Chautala and Suresh Kalmadi as life presidents of the national Olympic body. "The government has decided to revoke the suspension of deemed recognition of IOA with immediate effect in the light of the corrective action taken by them in reversing its earlier decision making Shri Abhay Singh Chautala and Shri Suresh Kalmadi, Life Presidents of IOA," the ministry said in a statement. "Since the IOA has admitted the faux pas committed and regretted the inconvenience and embarrassment caused to all concerned, it is expected of IOA that it will uphold the highest standard of probity and ethics in its functioning in future," the statement added. The IOA, which came under-fire for appointing and Chautala as its life presidents, had on Tuesday decided to reverse its controversial decision. Reflecting on the same, IOA president Narayana Ramachandran had said that there was no resolution passed for the appointment of the duo in the Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Chennai. However, as per sources, the decision to appoint Chautala and Kalmadi as life presidents was unanimous. A resolution was moved by Joint Secretary Rakesh Gupta and a total of 150 people, who were a part of the meeting in Chennai, agreed to it. The move to elevate the scam-tainted duo to the honorary position in the IOA shocked the Indian sporting landscape and left the Sports Ministry fuming. While Kalmadi was the first one to voluntarily decide to step down from the post, Chautala, former IOA president, had insisted that he is ready to relinquish the post if the International Olympic Committee (IOC) tells him to do so. Earlier, Union Sports Minister Vijay Goel had informed that the sports ministry has suspended the recognition granted to the IOA until it reverses its decision on appointments of Kalmadi and Chautala. "The day the IOA took this decision to appoint Kalmadi and Chautala as life presidents, the government clarified that they don't agree with it as the decision was against basic ethics. That's why the government has decided to suspend their recognition till it reverses the order," Goel had said. IOA's assistant vice-president Narinder Batra had earlier also resigned from his post in protest over the appointments of Kalmadi and Chautala as life presidents. Kalmadi served as the IOA president from 1996 to 2011 and was jailed for 10 months for his involvement in the 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games corruption scandal but later released on bail. Meanwhile, Chautala was earlier this month certified as the chief of the Haryana Olympic Association (HOA) by the IOA. Chautala served as the president of the IOA from December 2012 to February 2014 when the IOA was suspended by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for fielding charge-sheeted candidates at the elections. His election as IOA chief was annulled by the IOC. Only after the IOA Constitution was amended to ensure that charge-framed candidates are not allowed to contest elections, the IOC revoked the suspension on IOA in February 2014. (ANI)