NEW DELHI: With no sign of the Association of Indian Universities (AIU) acting on the `positive' doping cases reported at the last inter-university athletics championships, the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) has stepped in to initiate proceedings against the 10 athletes who have been charged.

Taking suo motu cognisance of the positive tests reported by the Dope Control Centre (DCC) here, the AFI has summoned the athletes to appear before a hearing panel on June 8. Till now, the federation was waiting for the AIU to act, but with the latter keeping quiet, the AFI was forced to set the process of hearing in motion.

The AFI's communication has been routed through the state associations. For good measure, it has put a copy of the letter to the Directors (Sports) of various universities to which the 10 athletes belong. It has also informed the AIU of the steps being taken.

Through the letter, sent out last week, the AFI has explained that the athletes had the right to get the `B' samples tested if they so desired. The AFI has also informed the Teams Wing of the Sports Authority of India, through which the DCC reports `positive' cases, to preserve the `B' samples of the specified code-numbered bottles till those cases are disposed of.

This is, of course, routine and mandatory and the laboratories are supposed to follow such procedures, but with the big time-lag between initial reporting and the belated action there is some concern about the preservation and integrity of the `B' samples.

Moot point

The inter-university athletics championships were held in Bangalore from January 25 to 29 this year. The positive dope tests were routed through the AFI to the AIU in three batches up to the last week of March.

How such a delay could have happened is a moot point, but things were further delayed as the AIU, at least in its public stance, first took the plea that it was yet to look into the reports. Then, it dragged its feet.

"We will be consulting the AFI," was how the Secretary-General of the AIU, Dayanand Dongaonkar, kept explaining his body's approach to the doping cases even as the AFI maintained that every rule and every procedure had been intimated to the AIU sports wing in written communications.

Prof. Dongaonkar was not available for comment on Thursday as he had gone abroad, according to his office.

Being the first time that dope tests were conducted in any inter-university competition, the confusion about the procedures was understandable up to a point, but when nothing moved for more than two months there were concerns.

"Why did they allow dope tests in Bangalore if they were not going to act on `positive' reports?" an AFI official asked.

Debatable

The procedures now being adopted might be debatable since the testing authority (AIU in this case) has not acted on the `positive' reports. But with the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) keeping a close watch on all doping-related developments the AFI has been forced to act.

At least one athlete should feel happy that proceedings had been delayed to such an extent. Jasmin Joseph, the MG University (Kottayam) 400 metres runner, who took the gold in a new meet record time of 54.88 seconds, was one among the 10 who returned a `positive' in Bangalore.

She went on to win the National Games title at Guwahati in February and tested positive there also, for the same steroid, it is learnt.

In the normal course, Jasmin would have faced a life-ban had the two cases been proved. In this instance, she was not even informed about the first "offence" even well after the second one was reported. She will thus escape a life-ban and faces only a two-year suspension even if both charges are proved.

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