Indian Weightlifting Federation banned

The Indian Weightlifting Federation has been banned for the second time in seven months of coming out of a year's suspension and its embarrassed officials are unable to explain the utter humiliation.

The International Weightlifting Federation (IWF), which announced the ban on its website, is still undecided on the duration of suspension to be slapped on the national body.

"Regrettably, four adverse analytical findings were reported on the occasion of doping controls carried out on the Indian national team members, this year. The Indian Weightlifting Federation has been suspended, the duration of which will be decided by the IWF Executive Board at the end of May," according to the official IWF website.

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The IWF made it clear that B Prameelavalli, who dropped out of the Melbourne-bound Indian weightlifting team at the last minute, had also tested positive for a banned substance in the World Anti-doping Agency (WADA) test, conducted in Patiala.

"The four competitors concerned are Ms B Prameela Valli, Sailaja Pujari, Edwin Raju and Tejinder Singh. Their provisional suspension will remain in force as long as all the applicable procedures have been completed," it said.

Indian Weightlifting Federation general secretary Balbir Singh Bhatia denied having received any official information regarding the same and when coaxed reacted angrily.

"We have not received any official communication in this regard. We have come to know about it only through media," was Bhatia's answer.

Asked what went wrong with lifters Edwin Raju and Tejinder Singh when they were cleared in the SAI's departure Tests for the just-concluded Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, Bhatia said he had no idea as their dope test reports from WADA as well as SAI were negative.

"I have no idea. It seems they had tested positive by both WADA and SAI but the reports indicated otherwise. That is why we let them board the flight to Melbourne," he said.

Asked to elaborate on how could two reports show wrong results, he said "You are asking me the questions which I cannot answer. I have the reports with me, anyone can come and have a look at them. I am not stupid to allow them to be in the team despite being on dope," he said.

Bhatia, who had earlier said that Prameelavalli had pulled out of the Games due to some "family and personal reasons", admitted that Prameela was found positive in the WADA test.

Edwin Raju and Tejinder Singh tested positive for stanozol in the pre-event tests at the Games while Shailaja was also caught for the same drug in the random tests conducted by WADA at the national camp in Patiala before the Games.