IOA-IOC meeting fruitful, solution on logjam likely: Sources
International Olympic Committee (IOC) in Lausanne, Switzerland, went off well on Tuesday as a resolution on amendment of IOA constitution in order to hold its elections before December could be achieved, according to sources. While issuing a final warning to the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) to hold elections by December or face ban, the IOC, earlier this month, had called for a joint meeting on Tuesday "in order to agree on a constructive solution and establish a roadmap leading to the elections of IOA". "The meeting went off well. It was a constructive and fruitful meeting. A plan is there and I think we can have a solution. Let's see," a source privy to the development told PTI on conditions of anonymity. On September 22, the Supreme Court gave its permission to IOA Secretary General Rajeev Mehta and vice president Adille Sumariwalla to participate in the meeting with the IOC, along with sports ministry officials. The SC had also appointed former apex court judge Justice L Nageswara Rao for amending constitution of IOA and preparing electoral college. A bench headed by Justice DY Chandrachud asked Justice Rao to prepare a road map for amending the constitution and holding elections by December 15. Meanwhile, shooter Abhinav Bindra, the country's first individual Olympic gold medallist, also attended the meeting and presented his views. "...unexpected for me, is to be back for a second meeting on this subject 10 years after the first one. So much has changed in Indian sport over the last ten years and yet a fair bit has not," Bindra said in his statement to the joint meeting. He was referring to a similar endeavour he was involved in when the IOA was banned by the IOC from December 2012 to February 2014.
