IOA Electoral Officer says he had no power to act on alleged violations in SOM elections
The Electoral Officer for the Indian Olympic Association's Sportspersons of Merit elections has clarified that he lacked the legal authority to disqualify candidates or cancel the election despite receiving complaints of rule violations. The election process faced controversy following allegations of influence peddling and code of conduct breaches.
Why it matters
It exposes governance gaps within national sports bodies and the challenges of maintaining integrity in internal organizational elections.
New Delhi Electoral Officer Sanjay Kumar Srivastava, who conducted the Indian Olympic Association’s (IOA) Sportspersons of Merit (SOMs) elections, has broken his silence on allegations of Model Code of Conduct violations by candidates during the controversy-marred exercise, saying that he was not authorised to punish any breach of rules but did respond to grievances by issuing advisories. Mr. Srivastava, a former State Election Commissioner of Delhi, said he could not also have delayed the SOM elections after he got complaints on the night before the election day. Bhupathi, Sania set to be SOM in AITA executive committee Bhupathi, Sania set to be SOM in AITA executive committee Bhupathi, Sania set to be SOM in AITA executive committee storyline 1 "The thing is that, I have no power to take punitive action (against alleged rule violations). I cannot disqualify anybody, I cannot cancel elections.
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