International Paralympic Committee derecognises Paralympic Committee of India
The International Paralympic Committee have derecognised the Paralympic Committee of India (PCI) for in-fighting. As per the letter written by the world body and sent via mail to the PCI, the suspension is for an indefinite period of time.
The Chief-Executive Officer (CEO) of the International Paralympic Committee Xavier Gonzalez wrote in his letter that the state of affairs in India has been disorganised for a considerable amount of time now, and that such a situation can't bring any positive results for the country. This is the third time that the association has been derecognised.
"The situation in PCI has been chaotic for several years now, which is mostly due to individual conflicts at the national level between different groups and persons ... and the situation does not bring any positive outcome for the athletes,” the letter read.
Shocked by the decision: Chandrashekhar
The secretary-general of the PCI Chandrashekhar expressed shock at the decision taken by the governing body.
"We are shocked at this harsh decision. We will ask the world body not to stop our athletes. We have suspended our president and we will explain our position,” he said.
The PCI has been in the news in recent times for all the wrong reasons, and it has been asked to show cause by the sports minister as well. A deadline of Friday has been given to them to respond. The body could also find itself being derecognised by the government.
The President of the PCI Rajesh Tomar was suspended last week by the organisation after the national championships, held in Ghaziabad, were completely mismanaged.
Until the ban is lifted, Indian athletes won't be able to participate in any international events.