Chandigarh Olympic Association told to hold election in March
In a yet another embarrassing moment for the Chandigarh Olympic Association (COA), a local court has ordered fresh election of the body by March under the supervision of an administrator, who will be appointed by the Chandigarh Deputy Commissioner.
Hearing a 2021 writ petition filed by former COA secretary Raghumit Singh Sodhi, the court of Justice Kuldeep Tiwari has ordered fresh elections of the association in March. The order also mentions appointment of an administrator for conducting the elections. “The administrator appointed by this court shall, in view of the existing members of the society, conduct the elections in March by ensuring compliance of the requisite rules and regulations of the Chandigarh Olympic Association, Indian Olympic Association and National Sports Development Code of India, 2011. After completion of the elections, the administrator shall hand over the charge to the newly elected governing body,” read the order.
It further added that, “In view of the consensus ad idem (supra), this court deems it appropriate to direct the Deputy Commissioner, Chandigarh, to appoint an administrator, but not below the rank of an all India service officer, for conducting the elections of the society concerned. The administrator so appointed shall take over the charge of the society for the purpose of conducting elections and the office-bearers of the society shall hand over the entire record to the administrator. After successful completion of elections, the administrator is directed to hand over the charge of the society to the newly elected governing body.”
“As many as 24 affiliated units of the COA filed an intervening petition, which had been pending between the rival groups for the last four years. The court has decided the petition and has directed the Deputy Commissioner, Chandigarh, to appoint an administrator of IAS rank to conduct fair elections in March. The office-bearers are directed to hand over the entire records to the administrator,” said Advocate Beant Singh Seemar, appearing for the applicants.
In 2021, two factions of the COA were at loggerheads over their claims over the association. Two parallel elections were conducted and surprisingly, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) had appointed the same observer for both elections.
The fight over who is right continued for a while before a final house was formed. However, differences started to emerge in the newly elected house and another blow came last year when the house elected a new president, senior vice-president and treasurer.
All for power
Even as power hungry individuals remain active brazenly on the political front, the COA has conducted only one state game since its inspection. In October 2005, the COA hosted the first Chandigarh State Games on the theme “Citius, Altius and Fortius”. More than 3,000 sportspersons assembled at the old Sector 17 football ground to take part in the show that lasted for over two hours. The then Punjab Governor and UT Administrator, General SF Rodrigues (retd), along with Flying Sikh Milkha Singh lit the torch.
Over the years, the list of the COA officer-bearers included some famous politicians (even from Punjab), sports administrators, legal experts, former meritorious sportspersons and who’s who of the city, but no one dared to end the political slugfest and promote sports in Chandigarh. In the recent past, the COA saw individuals promoting their relatives to remain in power.
