Sports Ministry Unveils 20-Member National Sports Election Panel
The Sports Ministry on Thursday unveiled a 20-member National Sports Election Panel (NSEP), featuring two former Chief Election Commissioners of India, to oversee free and fair elections in national sports bodies.
The formation of the panel was mandated under the National Sports Governance Act, passed by Parliament in 2025, with the roster comprising former election officials from the central and state levels.
Former CECs Lead Election Panel
Former Chief Election Commissioners Achal Kumar Jyoti and Sunil Arora are among the senior members of the National Sports Election Panel.
Jyoti served as Chief Election Commissioner until 2018, while Arora held the position from 2018 to 2021. Former Election Commissioner Anup Chandra Pandey is another prominent member of the panel.
The NSEP also includes three former Deputy Election Commissioners of India — Sandeep Saxena, Sudhir Tripathi and Umesh Sinha.
According to a Sports Ministry gazette notification, the panel has been constituted under Section 16 of the National Sports Governance Act, 2025, along with the National Sports Governance (Removal of Difficulties) Order, 2026.
The panel will act as a pool of Electoral Officers responsible for overseeing elections of national sports bodies.
NSEP To Oversee Sports Body Elections
The National Sports Election Panel will nominate Electoral Officers from its 20-member roster to supervise elections for executive committees as well as athletes’ commissions of national sports bodies.
Major organisations including the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and the All India Football Federation (AIFF) are among the sports bodies due to hold elections this year.
The panel’s roster will be maintained by the National Sports Board, although the board itself is yet to be constituted. The deadline for applications for positions on the National Sports Board has already been extended more than once.
The move comes as part of wider efforts under the National Sports Governance Act to bring greater structure and oversight to the administration and elections of national sports bodies.
Sports Ministry Extends Tribunal Deadline
In a separate notification, the Sports Ministry has extended the deadline for applications to positions in the National Sports Tribunal (NST) by one month to October 11.
It is the seventh extension granted for the constitution of the National Sports Tribunal, prolonging the delay in setting up the body.
Once established, the NST will handle sports-related disputes across the country and is expected to reduce prolonged legal battles involving sports administration and selection processes.
National Sports Election Panel Members
The 20-member National Sports Election Panel comprises:
- Achal Kumar Joti — Former Chief Election Commissioner of India
- Sunil Arora — Former Chief Election Commissioner of India
- Anup Chandra Pandey — Former Election Commissioner of India
- Alok Kumar — Former State Election Commissioner, Assam
- Chandrashekhar Bhatt — Former State Election Commissioner, Uttarakhand
- Dalip Singh — Former State Election Commissioner, Haryana
- Harish Chandra Joshi — Former State Election Commissioner, Uttarakhand
- Narendra Kumar — Former Election Commissioner, Union Territories
- R. Parasuram — Former State Election Commissioner, Madhya Pradesh
- Rajeev Sharma — Former State Election Commissioner, Haryana
- S K Srivastava — Former State Election Commissioner, Delhi
- Sanjay Prasad — Former State Election Commissioner, Gujarat
- Urvinder Pal Singh Madan — Former State Election Commissioner, Maharashtra
- Varesh Sinha — Former State Election Commissioner, Gujarat
- Sandeep Saxena — Former Deputy Election Commissioner of India
- Sudhir Tripathi — Former Deputy Election Commissioner of India
- Umesh Sinha — Former Deputy Election Commissioner of India
- Ajay V Nayak — Former Chief Electoral Officer, Bihar
- Ranbir Singh — Former Chief Electoral Officer, Delhi
- Umang Narula — Former Chief Electoral Officer, Jammu & Kashmir
The constitution of the National Sports Election Panel marks a significant step towards implementing the electoral framework envisaged under the National Sports Governance Act, while the continued delay in forming the National Sports Tribunal remains a key pending issue.
