Punjab badminton bodies at war with each other over Mohali championship

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, September 3

Citing legal grounds, as many as 12 out of 19 affiliated District Badminton Associations (DBAs) of Punjab have written to the Punjab Badminton Association (PBA) demanding that the State Badminton Championship 2021-22 slated to be held in Mohali from September 15 to 19 be put off.

In their letters shot off to Rajinder Kalsi, who has been honorary general secretary of the Punjab Badminton Association and is a Jalandhar-based businessman, the members of the 12 DBAs have questioned his authority to conduct the state event, especially in the light of three civil writ petitions pertaining to the PBA pending in the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

They have said that Kalsi cannot hold the post as he was holding it against the constitution of the PBA. “He is 70-plus. His tenure ended on June 2019 and he had himself resigned from the post. He has held the post for 36 years whereas the maximum tenure is of eight years. He no longer represents any affiliated district association, which is mandatory. So, legally he can neither call an event nor ask for payment of affiliation fee,” said the office-bearers of 12 DBAs, including those of Hoshiarpur, Amritsar, Ludhiana, Patiala, Pathankot, Ferozepur, Muktsar, Sangrur, Faridkot and Fazilka.

In a notice put up on the portal of PBA on August 19, two days after the High Court issued a notice to Badminton Association of India for the formation of ad hoc committee of PBA till the cases are settled in the court, Kalsi had asked all DBAs to send the entries for the state championship and affiliation fee by September 5. The associations have said the last date for the entry had been smartly chosen as the next date of hearing in the HC is September 6. Ritin Khanna, member of the interim committee of DBA in Jalandhar, said Kalsi was just trying to create a rift between the associations and the players, who were getting panicky.

In the entire mess, the players across the state are caught up as the last date of sending entries is just two days away and they are apprehending that their future could be at stake owing to the ongoing tussle between the DBAs and Kalsi running the PBA. Kalsi, on the other hand, maintains: “I am still the general secretary of the Punjab Badminton Association as the Badminton Association of India is routing all its communication through me. I have already started receiving the entries and will go ahead with the event. Whosoever wants to participate in the championship is welcome to send their entries. Those who will not send the entries owing to whatever false allegations that they are levelling against me will be the losers.”

Kalsi also alleged that some of the letters from DBAs including those from Ludhiana received by him for cancellation of the event had fake signatures.

Countering this, Anupam Kumaria, honorary general secretary of the DBA, Ludhiana, confirmed having sent the letter to Kalsi under his own signatures. Kumaria too is of the opinion that Kalsi should gracefully quit the post as he could no longer legally hold the position and let another interim committee handle the PBA working and events till the time the matter remains in the court.

Parents of players a worried lot

The parents of the budding players from across Punjab, who have recently won at the district levels, are a worried lot as they apprehend that the chance of their children to perform at the state level could be lost due to the conflict between the district associations and the state. The parents from Jalandhar on Friday met the local association authorities and even approached Kalsi, who resides locally, to get the matter resolved so that their children do not suffer in the ongoing tussle.

Will take decision on holding event today: Mohali DBA

Caught in the ongoing tussle, Ashok Kaushal, president of the host District Badminton Association, Mohali, said: “We will take a decision regarding the event on Saturday. A meeting has been called in and I will discuss all the issues with my association members. There still is some time left. We do not want the players to suffer at any cost.”