Indian Olympic body chief PT Usha rubbishes allegations of autocratic leadership

A day after 12 Executive Committee members wrote a letter to a top International Olympic Committee official, accusing PT Usha of 'autocratic leadership', the legendary athlete lashed out at the allegations. In a strongly-worded reply, Usha said some of these members have 'questionable track record'.

In Short

• PT Usha lashed out at Executive Committee members of the Indian Olympic Association
• Usha and the EC members have had disagreements over the functioning of the IOA
• Usha said several EC members were 'indifferent to the aspirations of our athletes'

Legendary athlete and Indian Olympic Association president PT Usha lashed out at 12 members of the governing body's Executive Committee (EC) for accusing her of autocratic leadership. A day after the 12 members wrote to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Director of International Relations Jerome Poivey, Usha lashed out at them, saying they were baseless allegations. In a strongly-worded response, Usha accused a few EC members of misappropriating funds, gender bias, adding that some of them have complaints of sexual harassment filed against them.

PT Usha alleged that the EC members have vehemently denied recording their meetings after the two parties disagreement over the appointment of CEO Raghuram Iyer. On Thursday, Usha and the members of the EC were involved in a bitter confrontation where the former rejected the idea of removing Iyer from his role.

In their letter to Jerome Poivey, the Head of IOC's Institutional Relations and Governance, the EC members detailed their concerns about Usha's behavior. They alleged that her approach is characterized by a "my way or the highway" attitude, which contradicts the democratic principles of the IOA constitution. The members expressed deep concern over Usha's conduct, stating that she consistently disregards the views and concerns of her colleagues, leading to a lack of progress and stonewalling good governance practices.

The letter also highlighted that this pattern of behavior has been consistent in previous meetings, resulting in a dysfunctional governance environment.

PT USHA'S REACTION TO EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE'S ALLEGATION

As the Indian Olympic Association President, it is disheartening for me to address the recent, false and baseless allegations made by 12 IOA Executive Council (EC) members, in a letter addressed to International Olympic Committee (IOC) Director of International Relations Mr. Jerome Poivey.

These accusations are only intended to malign my leadership and the efforts of those working diligently towards the betterment of Indian sports.

In my 45-year-long career as a sportsperson representing India at the highest levels of a competition, I have never encountered individuals so indifferent to the aspirations of our athletes and our nation's sporting future. Instead of supporting Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modiji's visionary goal of hosting the 2036 Olympic Games in India, these individuals seem more focused on self-serving power play and monetary gain through their prolonged presence and control in sports administration.

One of the most egregious claims made by these EC members is questioning Mr. Raghuram lyer's appointment as IOA Chief Executive Officer. It is important to clarify that his appointment, made in January 2024, was carried out in strict accordance with the IOA constitution.

As per Article 15.3.1 of the IOA Constitution:

"The 10A'S Executive Council shall appoint a Secretary General/CEO within 1 (one) month from the time such a position is vacated or is lying vacant due to any reason. The CEO shall be proposed by a nomination committee comprising of the President, chairman of the Athletes Commission and one IOC member from India. The nomination committee shall follow the due process of selection, including advertising the position, prior to the nomination of the CEO to the Executive Council. The CEO must be a person who is a management professional with management experience of at least 10 (ten) years as the CEO of a company/entity with a turnover of at least rupees 25 crores."

Despite the statutory deadline of a mere one (1) month to appoint a CEO, not even the process for selection was allowed to commence let alone appointment for almost two (2) years. In order to uphold the provisions of the IOA Constitution, notwithstanding the undue resistance from a majority of the EC, the Nomination Committee undertook the process of selection as envisaged in Article 15.3.1. For the purposes of accountability and transparency, the entire process undertaken by the Nomination Committee was minuted and duly shared with the entire Executive Committee during the January 2024 meeting.

To now question the process or the alleged 'exorbitant' salary payments made to him, is entirely false. It is pertinent to note here that his appointment was officially ratified in the January 2024 meeting. The said meeting has not only been video-graphed but also transcribed and minuted, all of which evidence the fact that a majority of the EC members accepted the appointment of Mr. lyer and requested and nominated me, as part of the EC, to only renegotiate the salary component.

In reality, despite his official appointment, Mr. Iyer has not been paid a single rupee till date. The delay in paying his salary is solely because certain EC members continue to defy the provisions of the IOA Constitution, obstructing necessary progress and decision-making. If these individuals were genuinely concerned about transparency, one must then question their vehement denial for recording of our Executive Council meetings. A true commitment to transparency would embrace accountability, but their actions clearly speak otherwise.

Further, it is essential to bring to light that some of these EC members have very questionable track records, including allegations of gender bias and even cases of sexual harassment filed against them. Recently, during the CAG audit, it has come to my attention that IOA Treasurer Mr. Sahdev Yadav, in connivance with the members of the IOA Finance Committee headed by Mr. Ajay Patel and comprising of Mrs. Rajlaxmi Singh Deo, Mr. BS Bajwa, Mr. Amitabh Sharma, Mr. Rohit Rajpal, Lt. Gen. Harpal Singh and Ms. Monal Choksi have surreptitiously written off large sums of monies owed to the IOA.

Additionally, a case of using the IOA's PAN card by the Ad hoc committee in charge of Volleyball, headed by Mr. Rohit Rajpal and its member Ms. Alaknanda Ashok, is also being investigated since it was done without the necessary approvals.

The former Acting CEO, Mr. Kalyan Chaubey bypassed IOA General Assembly to grant affiliation to the Taekwondo Federation of India, which is not recognised either by its World or Asian Federation, thereby causing imminent harm to our hard-working Taekwondo athletes. Despite these serious accusations, they continue to hold positions within IOA and other National Sports Federations.

In conclusion, I reiterate that this malicious letter from the 12 members of the IOA EC is part of a much broader attempt to hinder the progress of Indian sports and undermine the positive developments that we, as a collective, have worked hard to achieve, These actions not only tarnish the image of Indian sports but also do a disservice to the aspirations of our athletes and the nation's goal of becoming a global sporting powerhouse.

I stand firm in my commitment to the values of integrity, transparency, and the upliftment of Indian sports. We will not let such baseless allegations derail our mission to empower our athletes and bring glory to our country on the global stage.