Para-Rifat at loggerheads; Sports Council member threatens to quit

Excelsior Sports Correspondent
JAMMU, Nov 3: Secretary State Sports Council Waheed-Ur-Rahman Para and senior member of Sports Council, Rifat Abdullah are at logger heads and have developed major difference with Rifat threatening to resign from the primary membership of the elitist sports body of the State.
According to the reliable reports from the Council Secretariat, these two have developed major differences during the meeting of Sports Associations called by Para which was also attended by almost all the Kashmir based members.
Sources said that Rifat, who is former reputed athlete and member of prestigious Standing Committee of the Sports Council in his address during the meeting has asked Secretary to seriously look into and order an inquiry into the fictitious distribution of sports category certificates and their subsequent endorsement by Council to non sportspersons who seek sports category admissions to professional colleges and Government jobs, adding that Para in reply showed cold shoulder to his suggestions letting to major showdown and resulting in Rifat’s announcement that he would resign from the primary membership of the Council.
Sources further said that Rifat earlier also had walked out of the Sports Council Meeting chaired by the then Secretary Javaid Ahmed Shah protesting that heavy money is being exchanged by Council Officers in providing jobs to non sportspersons. He even had challenged the jaundiced policy of the sports categorization.
When contacted Rifat confirmed that he is going to submit his resignation to the Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti, who is the president of J&K State Sports Council. Rifat said that despite his all-out efforts as the member of the Council, he has failed to set the things right in the State’s highest Sports Body.
He further said that “Let the fraud happen is the ‘mantra’ to flourish in Sports Council’ as no body bothers to take things seriously with regard to promotion of sports and sportspersons in the State.
He said that providing certificates and jobs to non sportspersons is simply to flog a dead horse as the sports quota was meant for real sportspersons, who find less time for studies.
While talking to EXCELSIOR, Mr Para, however, said that the Council will be seriously looking into the suggestions made by Rifat and will leave no stone unturned in promoting sports and sportspersons in the State.
He further said that he had not received any resignation from Rifat.

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