IOA president Narinder Batra asks finance committee to explain losses incurred due to delay in hotel bookings for Tokyo 2020

Indian Olympic Association president Narinder Batra on Thursday demanded an explanation from finance committee chairman Anil Khanna on the losses incurred due to delay in hotel bookings for the Tokyo Games. The budget shot up Rs 73 lakh due to the delay. [caption id=“attachment_3171076” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of IOA president Narinder Batra. Getty images[/caption] In a letter to Khanna, who is also the IOA’s senior vice-president, Batra talked about how the delay in clearance on his part for booking 15 twin rooms, affected the top sports body’s finances. “You as Chair of Finance Committee, in your own wisdom decided not to clear it in June 2019 and kept pending by (sic) finally clearing it in February 2020 when the rate was almost USD 1080/1090 per twin room,” Batra wrote, mentioning that the earlier rate was USD 725. The booking was for 18 nights. “IOA has now incurred a loss of Rs 72,84,600 due to the delay at your end as Chair of finance committee or by the entire Finance Committee. I request for a factual position on the above at the earliest,” he added. The 2020 Tokyo Olympics, originally scheduled for July-August, was postponed to next year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.