Kalmadi to decide on rejoining IOA: Tarlochan

Indian Olympic Association (IOA) vice-president Tarlochan Singh on Thursday said that president Suresh Kalmadi, who was granted bail by the Delhi High court, was well within his rights to take over but he has to take the final decision.

After Kalmadi was arrested last year, senior vice-president Vijay Kumar Malhotra was apointed as the IOA interim president. But now out on bail, Kalmadi can take over as the IOA president since he never resigned nor was he dismissed by the general body of the IOA.

Tarlochan said there was no resolution for Kalmadi but if he comes back it would taint the image of the IOA.

"We are few month away from Olympic so VK Malhotra should continue (as IOA President). Commonwealth Games corruption allegation has tainted not just the IOA but also Olympic movement in the country," Tarlochan said.

"Suresh Kalmadi has long legal battle to fight. But VK Malhotra should continue as President. We have vested all power and support of the members. It is up to Kalmadi to decided what he wants to do," Tarlochan said.

Tarlochan said it is for Kalamadi to decide if he wants to join IOA again.

"It is up to him if he wants to return as president. No one has complained against Kalmadi in the General Body Meeting," Tarlochan told reporters here.

"He (Kalmadi) has already spent nine months in jail. This is also a good lesson for the CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) and it has proved that there is no strong case against him. The bail also proves that CBI has found nothing against him," said Tarlochan.

"The Commonwealth Games (CWG) was a huge success and Kalmadi has done a lot of good work as IOA president and was responsible for bringing the CWG to India. I don´t think there will be any objection if he wants to take over as the IOA president again," he said.