New Delhi:
Rattled by allegations of sexual harassment, the Indian women's hockey coach M K Kaushik on Wednesday has resigned and Hockey India has sacked videographer Basavraj whose photographs with a prostitute plunged the game into a moral crisis.
Kaushik announced his resignation after a meeting with a four-member inquiry panel comprising Rajiv Mehta (chairman) and former players Zafar Iqbal, Ajit Pal Singh and Sudharsan Pathak.
"I have said what I had to in front of the committee. I'm likely to be exonerated, but I have said that I no longer want to be the coach of the team", Kaushik said.
Former India skipper Zafar Iqbal said there may not be enough evidence since it is a case of one player's word against the coach. "I have spoken with the captain and I asked if he (Kaushik) had ever touched her, she replied to me saying no", he said.
The inquiry committee probing the sex scandal in women's hockey will submit its report to Sports Authority of India on Friday.
Earlier, the ugly scandal broke out when a member of the Indian women's hockey team sent in a written complaint of sexual harassment against national coach MK Kaushik. (Read: It's a conspiracy against me: Kaushik)
In an unrelated development, the video analyst of the team Mr Basavaraja, has been suspended. That after an anonymous person sent Hockey India photos of Basavaraja with a prostitute.
The pictures were reportedly taken during the team's recent trip to China.
Hockey India Secretary General Narinder Batra had earlier spoken on the issue saying that he had received the mail a few days back containing the complaint and the pictures.
Batra said he received an anonymous mail last Friday, in which allegations had been levelled against Basavraj for having been involved with prostitutes during the tours of Canada and China.
He said five photographs of the videographer with the prostitutes had also been mailed to him. Batra said the Sport Ministry has been apprised of the complaints.
"The inquiry committee was constituted soon after I got a mail from the hockey team. After a meeting on July 19, it was decided that the videographer should be suspended and the rest of staff against whom the allegations have been made should be issued notices," he said.
"The videographer is basically a SAI employee and it is upto them now, how they want to act against him. On our part we have sacked him," Batra said.
(With PTI inputs)
Kaushik announced his resignation after a meeting with a four-member inquiry panel comprising Rajiv Mehta (chairman) and former players Zafar Iqbal, Ajit Pal Singh and Sudharsan Pathak.
"I have said what I had to in front of the committee. I'm likely to be exonerated, but I have said that I no longer want to be the coach of the team", Kaushik said.
Former India skipper Zafar Iqbal said there may not be enough evidence since it is a case of one player's word against the coach. "I have spoken with the captain and I asked if he (Kaushik) had ever touched her, she replied to me saying no", he said.
The inquiry committee probing the sex scandal in women's hockey will submit its report to Sports Authority of India on Friday.
Earlier, the ugly scandal broke out when a member of the Indian women's hockey team sent in a written complaint of sexual harassment against national coach MK Kaushik. (Read: It's a conspiracy against me: Kaushik)
In an unrelated development, the video analyst of the team Mr Basavaraja, has been suspended. That after an anonymous person sent Hockey India photos of Basavaraja with a prostitute.
The pictures were reportedly taken during the team's recent trip to China.
Hockey India Secretary General Narinder Batra had earlier spoken on the issue saying that he had received the mail a few days back containing the complaint and the pictures.
Batra said he received an anonymous mail last Friday, in which allegations had been levelled against Basavraj for having been involved with prostitutes during the tours of Canada and China.
He said five photographs of the videographer with the prostitutes had also been mailed to him. Batra said the Sport Ministry has been apprised of the complaints.
"The inquiry committee was constituted soon after I got a mail from the hockey team. After a meeting on July 19, it was decided that the videographer should be suspended and the rest of staff against whom the allegations have been made should be issued notices," he said.
"The videographer is basically a SAI employee and it is upto them now, how they want to act against him. On our part we have sacked him," Batra said.
(With PTI inputs)
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