new delhi, May 29
The All India Tennis Association (AITA) leadership, led by President Chintan Parikh and Secretary General Sunder Iyer, said on Friday that player welfare, transparent governance and athlete representation will be the cornerstone of the AITA’s functioning if they get a full term, asserting that the leadership remains united in its vision to transform Indian tennis.
The AITA has been embroiled in administrative turmoil over the last two years, with a petition challenging the validity of the federation’s elections and the functioning of the Executive Committee.
Parikh and Iyer were elected in the 2024 All India Tennis Association (AITA) elections, the results of which were later withheld. The players alleged that AITA was not transparent, accountable and there was not much support to the players.
The petition had led to the appointment of former Jammu and Kashmir High Court Chief Justice Geeta Mittal as administrator to oversee the federation’s functioning and align its constitution with the National Sports Governance Act, 2025 before conducting fresh elections. Parikh said that there is no factionalism within the present administration. “There is no factionalism in the present administration of AITA. The team remains united. In the last EC meetings, all the decisions were taken unanimously. Players representation will be exactly as envisaged in the National Sports Governance Act and we are determined to support the same,” Parikh said.
“Sportspersons of Outstanding Merit and Athletes Committee will have their seats on the executive committee. We are committed to transparent and clean financial operations within AITA,” he added.
Iyer said the current office-bearers inherited a “broken system” and should not be blamed for decisions taken in the past.
