Skip to main content
BBC NEWS / SOUTH ASIA
Graphics VersionBBC Sport Home
News Front Page | Africa | Americas | Asia-Pacific | Europe | Middle East | South Asia | UK | Business | Health | Science & Environment | Technology | Entertainment | Also in the news | Have Your Say |
09:26 GMT, Tuesday, 22 April 2008 10:26 UK

Top Indian hockey official quits

Fans burn a photo of the Indian hockey team

A top Indian hockey official has resigned after allegations that he accepted bribes to include a player in the national team.

The hockey federation's secretary general, Kandaswamy Jothikumaran, denies the allegations.

He was secretly filmed by undercover reporters of the Aaj Tak TV station.

Indian hockey - the country's official sport - is still trying to recover after failing for the first time to quality for the Olympic Games.

'Initial expenses'

"Jothikumaran talked to me over phone and informed me that he has resigned and will not be associated with the federation until his name was cleared," the head of the Indian Hockey Federation, Kanwar Pall Gill said.

Aaj Tak broadcast their report on Monday evening. Three reporters posed as businessmen and held talks with Mr Jothikumaran about staging an international tournament. The station says its footage shows him accepting 200,000 rupees ($5,000).

The reporters also asked him to include a player, whose name was not revealed, in the national team.

"I was genuinely under the impression that a proposal for conducting a big tournament was being debated with me," Mr Jothikumaran told reporters.

"At no point of time did I raise anything about selection. The money they allege that I had taken was, in my opinion, to meet the initial expenses for organising the event in India."

Indian sports minister Manohar Singh Gill has called for an urgent investigation into the matter.

The Indian Hockey Federation has come under criticism after the team failed earlier this year to qualify for the Beijing Olympics.

It is due to host the 2010 hockey World Cup but the world hockey governing body has warned that it could lose the tournament unless it improves its preparations for the event.




E-mail this to a friend
Related to this story:
GB hockey men seal Beijing berth (09 Mar 08 |  Hockey )
Resentment of India's hockey team (26 Sep 07 |  South Asia )

RELATED INTERNET LINKS
Indian Hockey Federation
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites



SEARCH BBC NEWS: 

News Front Page | Africa | Americas | Asia-Pacific | Europe | Middle East | South Asia | UK | Business | Health | Science & Environment | Technology | Entertainment | Also in the news | Have Your Say |

NewsWatch | Notes | Contact us | About BBC News | Profiles | History

^ Back to top | BBC Sport Home | BBC Homepage | Contact us | Help | ©