Industry Odisha Bureau, Oct 09: Hockey India will be holding elections for its 2026-2030 term on December 5. This comes amid internal differences and disputes over state-level elections and voting rights.
Newly appointed electoral officer Sudhir Tripathi has directed all permanent member units to nominate one male and one female representative to the federation’s electoral college by October 15. The final electoral roll will be published on November 15.
Nominations can be filed from November 22 to 24. The draft list, notably, is scheduled for publication on November 24. Objections will be reviewed before the final list of candidates is released on December 1. Candidates will have the window to withdraw their nominations the following day. The final list of contestants will then be published on December 3. If an election is required, voting and the declaration of results will take place on December 5.
As per official reports, complaints and objections over the elections and electoral college composition have emerged in several states. These include Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Assam. Concerns have been raised over the eligibility of representatives and compliance with the National Sports Governance Act, 2025.
In Odisha, the proposed Hockey Association of Odisha elections were halted after the electoral officer flagged issues with district-unit documentation and governance. Hockey India subsequently issued a show-cause notice to Hockey Odisha. Wherein, they sought an explanation on why its permanent membership should not be levelled down to associate membership.
