IOA vs BFI: All you need to know about Boxing federation vs Indian Olympic Association row

IOA stripped BFI of its administrative powers.

In a dramatic power struggle that threatens Indian boxing’s stability, the Indian Olympic Association stripped the Boxing Federation of India of its administrative powers, but this is amid allegations of financial mismanagement, failure to abide by norms of governance, and missing the deadlines for elections, consequently throwing the immediate future of sport into uncertainty.

The takeover (IOA forms Ad-Hoc committee)

The IOA officially removed the Ajay Singh-led BFI administration, replacing it with a five-member ad-hoc committee. This panel, headed by former Athletics Federation of India treasurer Madhukant Pathak, includes vice-chairman Rajesh Bhandari, D.P. Bhatt, Virendra Singh Thakur, and former Asian champion Shiva Thapa as the sole athlete representative.

The committee has been tasked with managing boxing affairs, conducting elections by April-end, validating state units, and appointing a returning officer to oversee the electoral process.

Root cause (delayed elections and governance issues)

The BFI leadership’s official term expired on February 3, 2025, although elections never took place. Pressure from various state associations mounted, yet the federation continued to shelve the electoral process. While the organizers of the National Games held in Uttarakhand earlier this month pitched for the elections to happen on March 9, a total of 24 state associations flipped their demands and instead, decided to back BFI President Ajay Singh’s discretionary powers to decide the elections’ date and venue.

Through a letter dated February 3, BFI, in its promise to the Sports Ministry, said that elections would be conducted by mid-March, following a Special General Body Meeting scheduled for February 4.

However, officials never held this meeting, citing the ongoing National Games and World Boxing’s IOC recognition process as reasons for the delay.

The National Games were going on, and World Boxing is in the final stages to get recognition from the IOC and the president is closely involved in this, hence it was decided that the meeting will be held in March,” a BFI official familiar with the development was quoted as saying by PTI.

Financial misconduct allegations surface

Internal corruption allegations have compounded BFI’s problems. On December 28, the federation received serious complaints against key officials including Secretary General Hemanta Kalita and Treasurer Digvijay Singh.

According to PTI, the accusations include:

• Unauthorized fund withdrawals and fraudulent billing
• Abuse of power and protocol violations
• Tender process manipulation for the Multinational Training Camp in Rohtak and Guwahati Talent Hunt
• Appointment of non-boxing individuals as Technical Officials
• Unauthorized withdrawal of foreign currency
• Misuse of federation funds for personal expenses

Investigation committee controversy

At a January 12 Executive Council meeting, BFI leadership decided to investigate these allegations. Former Delhi High Court judge Sudhir Kumar Jain was appointed on January 21 to lead this inquiry.

This move sparked further controversy when Treasurer Digvijay Singh, who heads BFI’s finance committee, objected to the “unilateral appointment of a one-man inquiry committee.” Singh argued the matter should have been referred to the federation’s internal Disciplinary and Dispute Committee.

When summoned for questioning, neither Kalita nor Singh appeared before Judge Jain’s investigation.

IOA’s internal division

The IOA itself appears divided on the takeover decision. IOA Treasurer and Dispute and Affiliation Committee member Sahdev Yadav has publicly opposed the ad-hoc committee’s formation.

In a strongly worded letter to IOA President PT Usha, Yadav called the decision “arbitrary and without due authority,” claiming proper procedures weren’t followed. He stated: “The issuance of this office order creates an impression that the decision has been taken by the IOA, whereas, in reality, it is your personal decision.”

Yadav argued that National Sports Federations are autonomous bodies outside IOA’s jurisdiction, but the precedent exists for IOA intervention when federations fail to conduct timely elections.

BFI’s legal challenge

The India Boxing Federation, headed by Ajay Singh, has not accepted the takeover passively, but has also approached the court challenging the IOA’s decision and questioning the legitimacy of the ad-hoc committee’s authority.

Impact on athletes

Amid the administrative chaos, India’s boxers face uncertainty ahead of important international competitions. The ad-hoc committee has promised to conduct mandatory selection trials for all upcoming international tournaments, potentially bringing former elite boxers into selection panels.

What happens next?

The dispute’s resolution hinges on several key developments:

• BFI elections, targeted for April-end by the ad-hoc committee
• Mandatory selection trials for upcoming international tournaments
• The outcome of BFI’s legal challenge against IOA’s decision
• IOA President P.T. Usha’s response to internal objections about her unilateral decision-making

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