Same election observer for two parallel factions!
Deepankar Sharda
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, March 16
The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) has appointed same election observer for overseeing parallel poll of two factions of the Chandigarh Olympic Association (COA), confirmed highly placed sources.
Kuldeep Vats, a representative of the IOA who also attended the March 8 elections (conducted by one of the COA factions), will perform the same duty on March 17 elections to be conducted by another faction.
The March 8 elections were organised by former general secretary of the COA Maha Singh, wherein his son was elected as the president, and tomorrow’s elections are going to be organised by former president of the COA Amarinder Singh Bazaz, who is re-contesting for the top post.
“Kuldeep Vats has been nominated to oversee the elections under the official capacity of the ‘election observer’ for the March 17 elections,” said a highly placed source. Vats remained unavailable for his comments. On March 8, he had confirmed to have attended those elections under the official capacity. However, no document was produced.
IOA chief Narinder Dhruv Batra had already issued a circular confirming that this exercise (appointing observer) is not mandatory. However, appointment of a same person to perform same duty in parallel elections has taken many into state of shock.
The sources also claimed that the announcement made by Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi, Punjab Sports Minister and life president of the COA, on being chosen as the COA’s representative in the IOA on March 8, has not gone well with many in the higher-ups. The announcement (about Sodhi) was not included in the minutes of the annual general meeting, held recently, confirmed sources.
