Narinder Batra resigns as FIH president, gives up IOC membership

Veteran sports manager Narinder Batra on Monday resigned as President of the International Hockey Federation (FIH) and also renounced membership of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Batra stepped down as President of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) when the Delhi High Court, on 25 May, annulled the ‘Life Member’ position in Indian Hockey, as he had disputed it. in the IOA election and won back in 2017.

In three separate handwritten notes, Batra formally submitted her resignation from the IOA, IOC and FIH respectively. In all of his letters, he cites “personal reasons” behind his decisions.

“For personal reasons, I resign as FIH President,” Batra wrote to the FIH Executive Board.

Batra’s IOC membership is linked to the IOA presidency but his resignation from FIH came as a surprise because in May he said he wanted to focus on his work on the world hockey team. .

The refusal of the Delhi High Court to uphold his appeal before a double bench may have been the cause of Batra’s resignation. But the matter is listed for a normal hearing on July 26.

Following his dismissal by the High Court, Batra released a statement, announcing his decision not to take part in the upcoming IOA elections, saying instead that his focus will now be entirely on management. world hockey.

“At a time when world hockey is going through an essential phase of development, with the promotion of Hockey5s, the creation of a new competition this year – the FIH Hockey Nations Cup – and the launch of platforms and fan activity, my role as President of the International Hockey Federation (FIH) requires more time for all of these activities,” said Batra.

“Therefore, I have decided not to run for another term as president of the IOA.” The 65-year-old Batra first took charge of the IOA in 2017 and is eligible to run for re-election.

The IOA elections were scheduled for December last year but could not be held as scheduled due to ongoing amendments to the electoral process.

Batra became an IOC member in 2019 and later a member of the Olympic Channel Committee.

Batra became president of the FIH in 2016 and regained the position last year for a second term.

The Delhi High Court has ordered Batra to cease working as president of the IOA “in a contemptuous proceeding”, filed by Olympic athlete and world hockey champion Aslam Sher Khan .

The court subsequently appointed Anil Khanna, who holds the position of Senior Vice President of the IOA, as acting president of the IOA.

Batra’s reign was marred by many controversies.

In 2020, IOA vice-president Sudhanshu Mittal wrote to the IOC, accusing Batra of irregularities and making false statements during the election to the top position.

Batra recently apologized for a social media post against former Chief Justice of the Court of India RM Lodha, a development that led to his request to step down from the IOA’s top job.

In April, the CBI also started a preliminary investigation against Batra for alleged embezzlement of public funds.