MPs gang up to remove 'wild elephant' Gill

Agencies Posted: Mar 14, 2008 at 1253 hrs
New Delhi, March 14: Notwithstanding his refusal, a move is afoot among the Members of Parliament to seek Prime Minister's intervention for removal of IHF chief KPS Gill in the wake of India's failure to qualify for the Olympics.

Aslam Sher Khan, a former MP and a hockey great, has launched a campaign to remove Gill from the post and claimed to have got the signatures of 100 MPs till now.

"The MPs are very angry and want me to do something to save hockey and remove Gill. All senior and new MPs have come together and I have collected signatures of around 100 members and the memorandum will be submitted to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday or Tuesday. The number of supporting MPs could go up to 200," Aslam said.

A member of the 1975 World Cup winning team, Aslam said Sports Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar cannot shirk his responsibility to take action against the IHF chief.

"Government should look after proper utilisation of the facilities they provide like infrastructure, coaches and funds to the Federation. The Government also gives permission to teams for their foreign visits. So, Aiyar can't wash his hands of the issue," he said.

Aslam said since there had been precedences of Government taking action against the IHF administration in the past, the MPs decided to approach the Prime Minister for help.

The memorandum addressed to the Prime Minister says, "As the leader of the great country we ask you to follow the precedent which late Indira Gandhi took when country faced with the similar situation and hockey was on decline in 1983.

"She took immediate action by asking the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) to dissolve IHF and create an ad hoc committee. It went on to assess the damage done by the previous administration and took necessary steps to revive the game," it said.

The former fullback also lambasted Gill for the decline of hockey in the country over the last few years.

"Gill is behaving like a wild elephant which is crushing everyone's head. MPs think why it can't be corrected. In 1975, when Ashwini Kumar was the IHF president the Government ensured that the Federation elections were conducted under its observation. In 1983, former CISF Head IM Mahajan was the IHF chief and again hockey was on the down slide and Indira Gandhi directed the then Sports Minister to intervene. So if there is a will there is a way and I am confident that Government will take an initiative," he said.