SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, April 12: Veteran sports administrators who had founded the Jharkhand Olympic Association (JOA) after the creation of the separate state from Bihar have once again been sidelined in the newly constituted committee.
The new JOA committee, formed under the leadership of Supreme Court lawyer RK Anand, is set to be officially announced on Sunday (April 13).
While deserving candidates from various sports bodies have been given appropriate positions to promote sporting events, several founding members—including first executive president B.C. Thakur, Nurul Hoda, J.K. Sinha, Mridula Sinha of Ranchi, first general secretary S.M. Hashmi, first senior vice-president Zubair Alam of Dhanbad, and Olympian J.P. Singh of Jamshedpur—who founded JOA in 2000, have been overlooked once again.
S.M. Hashmi, who lost the general secretary post to Vishal Sharma of Palamu in 2017, was made working president in 2021. However, in the 2025–29 committee, he too has been sidelined.
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Resentment Over RK Anand’s Continued Leadership
There is growing resentment among the state’s sports fraternity over the re-election of Delhi resident R.K. Anand, who has been president of JOA for the last 25 years.
A sports enthusiast pointed out that while vice-presidents, secretaries, and other officials of the JOA have changed repeatedly over the years, RK Anand has remained entrenched in the president’s post despite not residing in Jharkhand.
“An FIR was lodged in 2010 against RK Anand, general secretary S.M. Hashmi, treasurer Madhukant Pathak, and Jharkhand government sports director P.C. Mishra on corruption charges. All were jailed and are now out on bail. Yet, except Hashmi, the others continue to hold key positions,” said a sports lover.
Interestingly, Bhola Nath Singh, who had lodged the complaint that led to the FIR while he was secretary of the Wrestling Association, has now been appointed senior vice-president in the new committee.
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Complaints Lodged with CM and Sports Minister
Former JOA senior vice-president Zubair Alam has submitted a memorandum to Chief Minister Hemant Soren and Sports Minister Sudivya Kumar Sonu, urging them to intervene and save the Jharkhand Olympic Association from “tainted persons.”
He emphasized that there is no shortage of capable sports personalities, sports-loving lawyers, and IAS/IPS officers in Ranchi, yet RK Anand continues to occupy the president’s chair. Alam alleged that Anand has little time for Jharkhand and that a caucus is running the association in his name for personal gain.
“If the government fails to act, we will move the court, as holding a top post for 25 continuous years is a violation of Supreme Court orders,” warned Zubair Alam.
