Official nod for GBA Recognised Body Must Handle Event: BFI Panaji: The Basketball Federation of India has broken its silence and confirmed that the Goa Basketball Association – headed by Fr Ralin De Souza – is the sole recognized body that has been granted permanent affiliation.
Goan Basketball, for the moment, is in a state of flux as two bodies - Goa Basketball Association headed by Fr Ralin De Souza and Association of Goan Basketball led by Dinesh Sinari – are jostling for control of the sport. Much of these doubts, however, are likely to be cleared after BFI Deputy CEO Prem Pal Singh strongly wrote to Sports Authority of Goa executive director Sandip Jacques. “The GBA is responsible for the control, regulation and promotion of the game in Goa and to select the teams for participation in all National events under the aegis of BFI or any other All India level tournament registered by BFI,” Singh said in his letter to the SAG. The BFI has gone a step ahead and told the SAG – with copies marked also to officers of the Lusofonia Games organizing committee(LUGOC) including CEO Keshav Chandra that only GBA headed by Fr Ralin as President and Menino D’ Souza as general secretary “should be involved in organisation and technical conduct of the Lusofonia Games 2013.” The letter is likely to ruffle several feathers in LUGOC and the Goa Olympic Association. Just last week, the GOA had handed over a list of two AGB officials who would be responsible for arranging 24 volunteers for the Lusofonia Games. “Please be informed that no association other than the GBA is authorized or permitted to control or regulate the game of basketball in Goa including the Lusofonia Games,” wrote Singh. The GOA has all along maintained that they were forced to provide temporary affiliation to the AGB since the GBA had long ceased to exist. That’s partly true since the previous GBA, then headed by CF Vaz, now dead, had done little or nothing of note to promote the sport. Fresh elections were then conducted and Fr Ralin’s GBA has already announced plans to conduct a state basketball championship later this month. With the BFI now officially throwing its weight behind Fr Ralin’s GBA, it will be difficult for the SAG, GOA or LUGOC to continue looking the ‘other’ way. Source: Times of India, Goa Saturday, Sep 21 Edition
