Adille Sumariwalla claims he has been 'appointed' IOA president, secretary general dismisses it

In a letter to International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach and IOA members, Sumariwalla said he has been "co-opted to be the president of IOA by the majority of the members of the Executive Council... vide letters dated July 2022". "The erstwhile IOA president Narinder Dhruv Batra resigned from the post on 18.07.2022 due to personal reasons which led to a vacancy for the post.

Thereafter, 18 executive members out of 31 in accordance with clause 11.1.5 of the IOA Constitution co-opted the undersigned to fill the vacancy," he said in the letter. "I accept the post of president of IOA duly co-opted by the majority members of the executive council," said Sumariwalla, one of the nine vice presidents of the IOA and also the president of Athletics Federation of India. Mehta, on the other hand, said the executive council of the IOA is non-existent since December 2021, when the elections of the office bearers were due and that only a senior vice president can fill the president's post till the polls.

"The term of the executive council (of 2017-21) has ended in December 2021, then where is the question of majority of executive council appointing him (Sumariwalla)?" Mehta asked. "Moreover, we are taking permission from the courts even to have a formal meeting of the IOA to discuss the issues arising out of IOC letter as the case relating to the elections is pending at Delhi High Court and Supreme Court. I hope he is not hauled up by the court," he told PTI.