The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) on Monday appointed former Jammu and Kashmir High Court Chief Justice Mahesh Mittal Kumar as the returning officer to conduct the impending Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) elections on July 4.
Union sports minister Anurag Thakur, after his meeting with protesting wrestlers on June 7, had said that WFI elections will be conducted by June 30 but it was clear that this deadline will be difficult to follow because a 21-day notice is required to call the Special General Meeting (SGM) of the WFI.
The elections can be conducted either at the annual general meeting or SGM.
Justice Mittal Kumar can decide the date of the SGM and the elections on his own and it will be up to him to hold the polls on July 4 or a few days later.
The WFI has 25 affiliated units, including union territories Chandigarh and Delhi. Each state unit can send two representatives and each representative shall have one vote. So, the electoral college for the WFI elections will consist of 50 votes.
The state units can nominate only those representatives who are members of their executive bodies, according to the WFI constitution.
It remains to be seen if the eligible candidates associated with outgoing WFI chief Brijbhushan Sharan Singh file their nominations.
