Tainted IOA treasurer Anandeshwar Pandey, who is already in a dock following allegations of rape, had his transport privileges (T2) revoked during the Birmingham Commonwealth Games due to allegations of “inappropriate” behaviour with a female driver.
Pandey, however, claimed that he was innocent, saying it was just a misunderstanding and had he done anything wrong, his Games accreditation would have been cancelled.
“If I would have done anything serious, my games accreditation would have been revoked but that did not happen. Only my transport privileges were withdrawn,” Pandey told PTI.
“It was a case of misunderstanding with a female driver while I was on my way back to the Games village from the wrestling venue. The timing of this email one month later shows it is clearly motivated.”
In a letter dated August 5, addressed to acting Indian Olympic Association president Anil Khanna, Head of Birmingham Games Family Services Ashwin Lokhare informed about the development.
“As a consequence of the inappropriate nature of Mr Anandeshwar Pandey’s behaviour which made the volunteer driver feel uncomfortable and left her in an awkward situation, Birmingham 2022 has made the decision to revoke his T2 transport privilege for the remainder of the Games,” the letter stated.
“We recognise that you spoke to Mr Pandey about his behaviour and apologised on his behalf. We also appreciate you taking the effort to address the concern.”
Pandey, general secretary of the Uttar Pradesh Olympic Association, has recently been accused of a rape complaint and an FIR in this regard has been filed against him at Rajasthan’s Bhiwadi police station.
A handball player has filed an FIR accusing Pandey of sexual assault.
The accusation against Pandey has been made by Seema Sharma, a former national-level handball player with Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB).
Pandey happens to have served as the Handball Federation of India (HFI) secretary general from 2013 to 2020.
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