ANDHRA PRADESH OLYMPIC ASSOCIATION Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner, Andhra Pradesh Olympic Association, represented by its General Secretary, R.K.Purushotham (Registration No.569/2016) filed Writ Petition No.46255 of 2018 to issue a writ of mandamus declaring the letters bearing No. IOA/ AGM/ 109/2018/ 2601 dtd. 22/11/2018 and No.IOA/GO/ANG-153/2505 dtd. 26/11/2018 as bad, arbitrary, capricious and in deliberate ignorance of the award No.1 of 2017 dtd. 24/12/2017 passed by the Arbitral Tribunal pursuant to the directions of this Court in W.P.Nos.15255 of 2016 and W.P.No.17965 of 2015 dtd. 5/9/2017 confirming the affiliation of the petitioner to 2nd respondent, with a consequential direction to the 2nd respondent to communicate all the circulars, letters and events to be conducted by the 2nd respondent to the petitioner.

(2.) The case of the petitioner in WP.No.46255 of 2018 is that after bifurcation of the State of Andhra Pradesh with effect from 2/6/2014, several writ petitions were filed by the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh Olympic Association claiming an alleged right to represent the State of Andhra Pradesh before Indian Olympic Association (in short IOA) - 2nd respondent ignoring the fact that the 2nd respondent had conducted elections on 4/4/2015 by sending its Observer and by letter dtd. 7/4/2015 confirmed the affiliation to the petitioner, including the body that was elected in the elections held on 4/4/2015. While so, W.P.Nos.15255 of 2016 and 17965 of 2015 came to be filed before the erstwhile combined High Court challenging the affiliation given by the 2nd respondent in favour of the petitioner and both the writ petitions were disposed of by a common order by a Division Bench of combined High Court of Andhra Pradesh on 5/9/2017 directing the 2nd respondent to constitute a Committee of Arbitrators of retired High Court Judges to examine and decide the issues as to which party is entitled to represent the residuary State of Andhra Pradesh. In pursuance to the direction of this Court, a committee of Arbitrators were appointed comprising of Justice K.Sreedhar Rao, former Acting Chief Justice, Guwahati High Court as the Presiding Arbitrator, while Justice R.B.Misra, former Acting Chief Justice, Himachal Pradesh High Court and Justice V.Jagannatham, former Jude, High Court of Karnataka, as Co-Arbitrators, who entered the reference, upon which the erstwhile A.P.Olympic Association filed its claim statement and the petitioner herein filed its reply statement and thereafter the Arbitral Tribunal passed an Award in Arbitration Case No.1/2017 on 24/12/2017 as follows:

(3.) This Court on 25/12/2018 in I.A.No.1/2018 granted the following interim order: