Mumbai: Hockey India (HI) paid Rs 5 crore more than the original deal signed by the IHF with the FIH to host last year’s World Cup at New Delhi, former IHF president KPS Gill alleged on Wednesday.
“When the IHF signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the International Hockey Federation (FIH) for hosting the 2010 World Cup in Delhi, the capitation fees that was agreed on was Rs 2.5 crore,” Gill said at a media conference here.
“But (Narinder) Batra revealed at a meeting three months ago that the amount was Rs 7.5 crore,” he added.
Gill, who is now an advisor to IHF, said at the meeting held on March 1 in New Delhi which was attended by the sports ministry officials, Batra also revealed that World Cup was neither organised by HI nor by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA).
“He said it was conducted by the organising committee of the Hero Honda FIH World Cup, registered with the Registrar of Societies in Delhi and headed by Suresh Kalmadi (former IOA chief),” the former cop said.
“I would file an FIR now to find out by which route Rs 7.5 crore went out of the country. I do not know whether it was through the RBI route or the hawala route,” he added.
Gill said the original budget planned for the World Cup was Rs 4.5 crore, including that of capitation fees, which IHF president RK Shetty clarified as title sponsorship charges levied by the FIH to give India the hosting rights.
The former IHF chief said the differences between the rival bodies — IHF and HI — can be sorted out easily but Batra is not willing.
“The IHF president is sitting by my side and I can say the IHF is willing to go more than half way to sort out the differences with HI. But Batra is unwilling and he has a strong supporter in an important politician, Arun Jaitley,” he charged. (UNI)
