Dutt scores own goal on two-term limits

Sports Minister Sunil Dutt is shooting over his NDA predecessor Uma Bharati’s shoulders in a desperate bid to justify the Government&#1...

Sports Minister Sunil Dutt is shooting over his NDA predecessor Uma Bharati’s shoulders in a desperate bid to justify the Government’s failure to enforce its 30-year-old stipulation that the tenure of office-bearers of national sports federations be limited to two terms of four years each.

Curiously, in an affidavit filed yesterday before the Delhi High Court, the Sports Ministry claims that the 1975 stipulation placing limits on the tenure of office bearers ‘‘is not being insisted upon by the Government in the interest of Sports Persons.’’

In other words, the Ministry is stating under oath that while releasing funds to sports bodies it is allowing the likes of Suresh Kalmadi, Priya Ranjan Das Munshi, Vijay Kumar Malhotra and K P S Gill to head them endlessly not for their own benefit but in the interest of sports persons.

Story continues below this ad

Worse, blurring all distinction between a file noting and an order, the Ministry disingenuously claims that Uma Bharati passed an order in August 2002 ‘‘scrapping’’ the 1975 restriction on the tenure of office bearers.

But all that the Ministry reproduced in the affidavit to support its claim is a mere file noting in which Uma Bharati had expressed her intention purely for internal consumption. ‘‘From our experience, the clause limiting the tenure of office bearers for four years each as mentioned in the 1975 guidelines appears to be impractical and it should be scrapped.’’

The Ministry did not attach any order where the 1975 restriction was actually scrapped. Instead, it seems to have scored a self-goal by annexing a noting made by Uma Bharati’s successor, Vikram Verma, in October 2002 overruling her decision.

	SITTING PRETTY

			Politicians — and one police officer — heading national federations in violation of 1975 order • V.K. Malhotra: (Archery, 7th term) • Suresh Kalmadi: (Athletics, 4th term) • PR Dasmunshi: (Football, 4th term) • KP Singh Deo: (Rowing, 4th term) • Jagdish Tytler: (Judo, 4th term) • SS Dhindsa: (Cycling, 3rd term) • KPS Gill: (Hockey, 3rd term) Story continues below this ad

Verma’s noting said: ‘‘It is felt that piecemeal decisions are not required at present — Secretary (Youth Affairs and Sports) may examine all the issues in totality and put up the matter on relevant files in a period of one month.’’

The affidavit is however silent on the outcome of the review directed by Verma.

There is another significant reason why Uma Bharati’s decision to scrap the 1975 restriction seems to be of doubtful validity. The affidavit discloses that Uma Bharati’s decision was based on a recommendation made by a working group headed by Suresh Kalmadi, who is himself a violator of the 1975 restriction and therefore had a vested interest in its removal.