Beijing Olympics 2008

Nothing sinister in Monika dope case

The one-man inquiry committee to probe the Monika Devi controversy ruled out any malafide intentions by the authorities to bar the Manipuri lifter from Beijing Olympics on dope charges but came down heavily on the officials for the delay in communicating the test results to her.

Former Chief Election Commissioner TS Krishnamurthy, who submitted the probe report to the Sports Ministry today, did not find any violation of procedure in the whole testing process but stated the delay in conveying the test results was “unpardonable”.

“I must state that I did not come across any concrete evidence of any malafides on the part of any individual although it is very clear that there was lack of unity of purpose among all these persons, it had no direct nexus to the issue of dope testing of the athlete,” Krishnamurthy said in his 18-page report.

“I am quite clear in my mind that the whole controversy surrounding this episode could have very well been avoided had there been a better management of the procedures,” he added.

Tags: beijing olympics 2008, monika devi, Weightlifting