The Boxing Federation of India (BFI) is in a leadership crisis after its president, Ajay Singh, and its secretary general, Pramod Kumar, suspended each other within a day, according to ThePrint, Millennium Post, The Tribune and ANI. Singh issued an order on 13 October suspending Kumar, and Kumar issued a counter-order on 14 October suspending Singh, both citing violations of the federation’s constitution.
The timeline is short. A cease-and-desist notice was served on the BFI president on 8 October, according to ThePrint. Singh suspended Kumar on 13 October, and Kumar responded on 14 October by suspending Singh pending the outcome of a no-confidence motion at a special general meeting on 28 October. That meeting is 14 days after Kumar’s order, a count by IndiaX24.
Singh’s order accuses Kumar of financial irregularities, non-cooperation with an inquiry and misuse of authority, according to The Tribune. The allegations include issuing a work order for a broadcasting arrangement without the required approval, failing to cooperate with an inquiry into the cancellation of a national championship and trying to convene an unauthorised meeting to move a no-confidence motion against the president. Singh also said that the federation had received notices from Pinnacle Broadcast Productions claiming about Rs 1.5 crore for broadcasting work, according to ThePrint.
Kumar’s counter-order accuses Singh of continuing to exercise executive control despite the cease-and-desist notice of 8 October. He said that Singh was treating the federation as his ‘fiefdom’ and disregarding democratic procedures, according to ThePrint. Kumar claimed to have the support of a majority of the affiliated state units for the no-confidence motion.
ThePrint describes the situation as a rare governance deadlock in Indian sports administration, in which two office-bearers each claim authority to suspend the other. The Tribune’s report says Singh’s suspension of Kumar was an interim measure pending a hearing and not a final finding. The reports reviewed do not say which of the two orders is valid under the federation’s constitution.
The wider setting is a difficult season for Indian boxing. IndiaX24 has reported that India finished fourth with 85 medals at the Asian Games but that the Sports Ministry reviewed the performance of experienced athletes in some sports, and the boxing medal table at the Games was topped by India, with Lovlina Borgohain winning gold, as IndiaX24 has reported. The reports reviewed do not link the federation’s dispute to any particular result.
Neither the Sports Ministry nor the Indian Olympic Association has commented in the reports reviewed. National sports federations in India are recognised by the government and the Indian Olympic Association, which is general background, and such bodies can intervene in disputes, but the reports do not say whether they will do so here.
The boxers and coaches are the people affected by the dispute. The reports reviewed do not describe the effect on training camps, selection or international entries, so IndiaX24 does not speculate about them.
The gap between the two orders is one day, and the meeting that will decide the question is 14 days after the second one. Until then, the reports reviewed do not say who is signing the federation’s documents or who represents it with the sports authorities, which is the practical question that the competing suspensions leave open.
IndiaX24 will report on the special general meeting on 28 October and any intervention by the authorities.
Image: A boxing ring at the 2012 Summer Olympics (file photo; a stand-in image). Photo by sachab, licensed under CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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