Jersey row: Tirkey unaware; Hockey India secretary says all knew

The furore over the Indian hockey teams’ new saffron jerseys has triggered a bit of wrangling within Hockey India, with President Dilip Tirkey calling it a decision that was taken without his knowledge and secretary Bhola Nath Singh insisting that “all officials were aware” of the change.

The Indian hockey teams, traditionally attired in blue, will be donning saffron kits during the World Cup in the Netherlands and Belgium starting August 15. The change in the uniform’s colour, which was announced on July 27, invited scathing criticism from former players such as Vasudevan Bhaskaran, Viren Rasquinha, Ajit Pal Singh and Pargat Singh among others.

All of them questioned the logic behind such a move, asserting that it would affect the team’s identity built over decades.

Till yesterday, HI, including Tirkey, maintained that it was a purely technical call to avoid visual similarity with the blue turf on which games are played. The body stated that the colour similarity affected “on-field clarity and visibility for the players”.

However, in an internal mail to HI officials, Tirkey stated that the decision was taken “without being placed before the Executive Board for discussion and without my prior knowledge.”

“I request the concerned HI officials to provide me with a written clarification at the earliest, outlining the basis for the decision, the process followed and the circumstances under which the change was approved and implemented. This will enable me to respond appropriately and accurately,” he said in the mail.

The said explanation has been sought by the Odisha government, which is the primary sponsor of the team.

“I have also been asked by the Government of Odisha to provide clarification regarding the matter. I therefore request the concerned Hockey India officials to provide me with a written clarification at the earliest, which will enable me to respond appropriately and accurately,” Tirkey said.

HI secretary Bhola Nath Singh, however, maintained that HI merely implemented what the players had demanded after due consultation.

“The decision to change the colour was circulated in our internal group, so all officials should be aware of it. We never thought it would be such a big issue. There was no outside pressure on us from anywhere to make the colour change. It is being unnecessarily politicised,” Singh told PTI.

Asked whether HI would rethink the decision, Singh said, “I alone can’t take decisions; there is a president and other office-bearers, we need to sit and discuss. At the end of the day, it was the demand of players and coaches, and we obliged.

“The players and coaches also need to be spoken to. We never thought it would be such a big issue.”

Justifying the position he took on Thursday, Tirkey, in his email, said that he did that to avoid any controversy ahead of the World Cup.

“The matter has since attracted considerable media attention and unfortunately political interpretation in certain quarters. With the WC (World Cup) approaching, I have publicly clarified that the change was purely a sporting decision so that the focus remains on the team and its preparations,” he said.

Tirkey insisted that the choice of saffron colour is not his concern, but the decision should have been taken in consultation with the elected leadership.

“My concern is not with the choice of saffron itself. A decision of this significance, involving the identity and representation of our national team, should ideally have been discussed with the elected leadership and the EB board members before implementation,” he said in the email.

“This is not to attribute blame but to ensure transparency, accountability and adherence to our established decision-making processes going forward,” he insisted.

A reliable source said that following the backlash, HI officials have sent an email to the Odisha government on July 30. The source also said that a separate mail has been sent by Tirkey to HI Director General Cdr RK Srivastava seeking his clarification.

When contacted, a member of the body’s EB told PTI that he had had no prior information about this decision and came to know of it only after the jersey was launched on social media.