CHENNAI: Finally, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) has put out an advertisement to appoint a Chief Executive Officer (CEO). As reported by this newspaper, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) had repeatedly reminded them to appoint a CEO and even given them a 30-day deadline during a meeting with the IOA’s executive committee last Saturday.
After more than eight months of delay and deliberations, the IOA went by the provisions of the constitution to invite applications from interested candidates on Thursday. A section in the IOA was trying to change the constitution, including the composition of the selection panel (IOA president PT Usha, chairperson of the athletes’ commission MC Mary Kom and IOC member in India Nita Ambani).
However, the IOC had said they should concentrate on appointing a CEO rather than concentrate on changing the constitution. According to the IOC, the constitution is fit for purpose.
The advertisement uploaded on the IOA website has gone by the new constitution that was approved last year. It says, "the CEO shall be proposed by a nomination committee comprising of the President, chairman of the Athletes Commission and one IOC member from India."
Even the eligibility criteria remains the same. "The candidate 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," the ad says. Last date of application is November 5.
The IOC, during its 141st Session in Mumbai, told the IOA to appoint a CEO at the earliest and that the constitution that was amended on November 2 and approved on November 10 last year during the annual general body meeting, is fine. The IOC president, Thomas Bach, did not meet the IOA’s EC but had a meeting with Usha and sports minister Anurag Thakur.
As of now, IOA joint secretary Kalyan Chaubey is in charge as acting CEO since January this year, which is in violation of the newly-amended IOA’s constitution. Interestingly, the constitution was adopted after it got the nod from the Supreme Court last year. The SC had formed a one-member committee of former SC judge L Nageswara Rao to draft the new constitution.
The constitution was then approved by the IOC and then later the SC, who directed the IOA to adopt the new constitution. The general assembly on November 10 adopted the draft constitution while a section of the IOA objected to quite a few provisions in the constitution. Interestingly, the SC has said that any modification or objection related to the constitution has to be directed through them. Interestingly, during the election on December 10, the IOA elected members who lacked prior experience in sports administration.
As reported by this newspaper, apart from the selection panel, the IOA also wanted to change the eligibility criteria of the CEO. They even suggested that the criteria can be altered by the EC as and when required. Certain sections in the IOA even wanted a change in the nomination committee consisting of IOA chief, athletes commission chairperson and IOC member. There is a suggestion that the EC should have powers to form its own panel. They, however, forgot that to change the constitution, they have to get approval from the IOC and the Supreme Court as well as the general assembly, who will give its consent. The last CEO advertisement was done earlier this year in January.
