Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, January 24:
For the reported impasse and mismanagement in the Manipur Veteran Amateur Athletic Association (MVAAA), the proscribed RPF has accused Sunil Elangbam s/o late E Deven of Keishamthong Elangbam Leikai, Elangbam Tondonsana of Kwakeithel Moirang Purel and S Sunita alias Moni Devi d/o S Samarendra of Moirangkhom Bazar but staying at present at DM College campus.
Taking serious note of the negative impacts caused by administrative irregularities of the MVAAA on veteran players, the RPF conducted a detailed investigation into the affairs of the association, stated a spokesperson of the RPF while briefing media persons at a location in Churachandpur district today.
It was during the course of the investigation that Sunil Elangbam, Elangbam Tondonsana and S Sunita were found guilty on several counts.
He said that Sunil Elangbam has been the secretary of the MVAAA since 2003 but he is not a veteran sportsman.
Moreover, against the guidelines laid down in Article 5-B-Financial Assistant (V) of Manipur Gazette (5th August 2005) of the Youth Affairs and Sports Department Manipur, Sunil is currently working as an important functionary in three different associations.
Presently, he is working as secretary general of the Manipur Weightlifting Association, secretary general of the Manipur Veteran Amateur Athletic Association and also as president of the Netball Association.
The spokesperson also accused Sunil of conducting election of executive members on April 2 last year in a faulty manner without approval of the MVAAA's president.
With a forged merit certificate of the 24th National Masters Athletic Championship 2003 held in Manipur, E Tondonsana schemed to take cash incentives from the YAS Department, RPF charged.
To ward off any objection to his fraudulent schemes, Tondonsana has been helping Sunil in the latter's illegal practices.
Tondonsana has been forging a certificate of winning second position in men's (above 55 years) half-marathon.
But the actual second position winner of the event was one Ranjit Singh of Rajasthan.
S Sunita Devi, a lecturer in GP Women's College, besides being an executive member of the MVAAA is a player herself.
She was elected to the Executive Council in 2003.At present, she is also lobbying for incentive awards from the YAS Department for the second time.
In the first instance, she received cash incentive from YAS Department for winning second position in 4X100 m relay race at the 10th Asian Veteran Athletic Championship held at Okinawa, Japan from October 15 to 18 1998.But she participated in the championship by manipulating her date of birth to January 10, 1941 .
But this time, Sunita gave her date of birth as January 10, 1944 in her application for cash incentive from the YAS Dept, pointed out the spokesperson.
The assertion that Sunita had manipulated her date of birth is self-evident from the fact that she is still serving in a Government college despite giving her date of birth as January 10, 1941 initially.
Other irregularities detected in the course of the investigation include election of executive council members without conducting general body meeting, initiating election process without appointing RO, allowing members whose memberships have not been updated to cast votes etc.
Further, the election to the executive council was found to be highly unconstitutional as the polling was held when the president of the yet to be dissolved council was making efforts to conduct the election in a proper manner after putting off a general body meeting on November 30 last year, asserted the RPF spokesperson.
Such gross irregularities and unconstitutional activities in the administrative affairs perpetrated by a few office bearers with narrow selfish interests resulted in the current impasse within the MVAAA, observed the spokesperson.
While the RPF was conducting its investigation, a State team of 16 players (eight each from the two groups) participated in the 28th National Championship at Jaipur in August last year.
After that, members of the association had a joint meeting in which it was agreed to hold election for the MVAAA in a proper manner.
The members also agreed to settle all misunderstanding within the association and to make an amicable compromise in the interest of sports development in Manipur.
However, Sunil Tondonsana and Sunita in their attempts to meet their selfish ends only aggravated the situation.
For their various illegal and unconstitutional activities, all three of them should give in to the RPF within seven days to confess their faults.
Failure to heed the call will result in fitting actions, cautioned the spokesperson while asserting that the corrective measures being taken up by the RPF are guided by its desire to conduct a democratic election.
There is no question of favouring any member, he added.
Taking part in the press meet, president of MVAAA Dr S Chaoba conveyed his desire to hold an election after updating memberships of those members who are yet to be updated.