31 clubs have stood in support of the newly-elected GKA President
PANAJI
Kabaddi is a contact sport with a lot of action, raids and tackles. Since the origin of the Pro Kabaddi League a few seasons ago, the physical sport has taken the interest of the country by storm with its glitz and glamour.
Goa and sport has its fair share of squabbles and imbroglio. Cricket to Volleyball and now Kabaddi. Different sport, but the denominator being similar. Controversies and infighting. Raids and tackles are now the norm within the Goa Kabaddi Association as well with warring factions trying to impose their supremacy at each other.
The discord within the association had arisen first in October 2017 when Rukmini Kamat was the GKA President. At that time, reportedly there were 38 clubs affiliated to GKA. In due course, within arose a conflict. Of the 13 Executive Committee members, eight sided with General Secretary, Mahabaleshwar Surlakar while the others stayed faithful to Kamat. With a power shift imminent, it became pertinent that the Association in the majority calls a meeting to decide the future course of action on the matter. Three meetings were called by the Surlakar-led group but Kamat stayed in absentia along with three other members, Joint-Secretary Devisha Satoskar, Executive Members, Vijaykumar Pole and Allaudin Sanadhi. As a consequence of which, as per the Constitution of GKA if there is an absence of any Executive Member from three consecutive meetings he/she is debarred from the Association.
The sacked President Rukmini Kamat had reportedly called for an executive meeting on August 20 and staked claimed that of the 68 existing clubs, 42 were present supporting her. To this effect, the group in majority state that with only 38 clubs in existence, only 4-5 were present in her defence. While 31 clubs stood in support of the newly-elected GKA President, Ramesh Desai. The group in majority lending support to Surlakar called a Special Body Meeting on August 15 to elect a new Executive Committee and from the 38 clubs, 32 were in attendance. In the ensuing meeting, the General Body accepted Ramesh Desai, a doyen of Kabaddi in the State as their new President, with Lau Ghanekar as Joint-Secretary, Suraj Malik and Bhanudas Parab as Executive Members.
With the RTI asking the group in majority to produce the documents with GKA, the Desai-Surlakar combine have come in the open to state that at the time of the last elections, all the relevant documents were handed over to the Election Officer, Rajesh Amonkar who in course gave it to the then President Rukmini Kamat.
With SAG Director VM Prabhudesai intervening on the matter and calling upon a meeting twice at Shyama Prasad stadium, Bambolim, she failed to turn up or produce the relevant documents.
The Desai-Surlakar faction state that the election process held on October 2 last, minutes book of GKA, audit documents from 2012-13 to 2015-16 are in her possession. They also add to say that Sports Authority of Goa is aware that they are the righteous group and have extended support to them. In the meanwhile, the newly-formed GKA Executive Committee have sent all the necessary details to the Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India affiliated to Sports Authority of Goa and Goa Olympic Association and asked them to take a decision on the matter.
