CHENNAI: Tamilnadu Basketball Association (TNBA) president Aadhav Arjuna and his panel's nomination papers were rejected by returning officer Justice (Rtd) Malleshappa, appointed for the elections of the Basketball Federation of India (BFI).
The returning officer, who was a former district judge in Karnataka, rejected his panel's nominations after it was found that the nomination papers that were submitted were not in the format prescribed by the national body.
While Aadhav had filed his nomination papers for the post of president, Kulwinder Singh Gill from Madhya Pradesh was contesting for the post of secretary general.
The papers that were rejected included states like Puducherry, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Nagaland, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Telangana.
The 12 nominations that have been declared valid are of the present BFI president, K Govindaraju from Karnataka, Ajeet Singh Rathore for the post of Secretary General from Rajasthan as also nominations from states like Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Punjab and Haryana.
The elections will be conducted on February 18.
It may be noted that Aadhav Arjuna is the son-in-law of Lottery king Santiago Martin. Aadhav is himself a national level basketball player and is also the Managing Director Arise Capital Services Pvt Ltd.
When IANS contacted Aadhav, he did not respond.
The Basketball Federation of India president, Govindaraju and his panel is now likely to be elected unopposed. However, sources from the camp of Aadhav told IANS that they will be moving to Delhi High Court against the returning officer rejecting their nomination on flimsy grounds.
With the Basketball Federation of India planning major events across the country to promote the game among youngsters, the crisis in the association is likely to affect the prospects of the game.