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July 29 - Hockey India has been given until October to hold elections and warned failure to do so could see the country banned from the World Cup it is staging in New Delhi next year, it has been alleged.

 

 

The threat was allegedly delivered by Leandro Negre, the President of the International Hockey Federation (FIH), during a meeting with rebels who claim that the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) acted undemocratically by disbanding national and regional organisations to form Hockey India.

 

 

J.B. Roy, of the Bengal Hockey Association,and Armit Bose, secretary of the Indian Hockey Women's Association, claim that Negre had told them that if elections were not held within three months then he would ban India from the World Cup.

 

Roy said: "I told him that the organisation [Hockey India] has nominees, not elected members, to various posts and is being headed by a former President of the boxing federation.

 

"I asked him whether such an organisation would be allowed to run hockey in Spain [Negre is Spanish]."

 

The IOA announced the formation of a unified body last month after the FIH threatened to take the World Cup away from New Delhi if the country did not have a single national association governing both the men's and women's game.

 

Roy said: "I told Negre that I am unhappy with the way FIH took this step without realising that democratic elections hadn't been held to the body.

 

"If at all they were keen on creating a unified body, why didn't they appoint officials associated with the game?"

 

The two officials also claim that the IOA is trying to influence the result of the composition of the new body by dictating who can and cannot participate.

 

Roy said: "The IOA is interfering in the democratic process by announcing a three-member committee to form the state bodies and instructing these bodies not to admit anybody without the permission of its favourites, - Lalit Bhanot and Harish Sharma.

 

"Neither of these two gentlemen have any relevance or relation to hockey."

 

Roy also repeated his threat to send a five-member delegation to meet the International Olympic Council (IOC) President Jacques Rogge in Lausanne and explain the situation in India.

 

He said: "I will knock on the doors of the IOC and tell them about the high-handedness of the IOA.

 

"I'm not sure whether IOC will accede to our requests but we will make an attempt."