The Paralympic Committee of India was suspended by the Sports Ministry due to delays in holding elections for its executive committee on Saturday.
A statement from the Sports Ministry stated that the PCI was expected to hold elections immediately following the expiration of the current committee’s term on January 31. However, the PCI decided to hold the elections on March 28.
The Ministry’s intervention comes after this scheduling decision—which comes nearly two months after the previous committee was dissolved—directly violating both the Sports Code and the PCI's stated constitutional rules.
The statement read: "The decision (to suspend the Paralympic committee of India) was prompted by procedural irregularities surrounding election scheduling and adherence to regulatory frameworks.”
"Whereas the PCI was well aware of the fact that the term of the Executive Committee was only up to 31.01.2024, its decision to hold the election on 28.03.2024 is willful, intentional and without any valid reason.”
“Such failure undermines the democratic process and the principles of good governance as mandated under the National Sports Development Code of India. Compliance with the Sports Code is imperative to ensure transparent and democratic governance in Indian Sports in a legally sound framework, at par with the other National Sports Federations," the statement read.
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