Kandhamal MP and founder of KIIT and KISS, Dr Achyuta Samanta has been declared as the new president of Volleyball Federation of India. Election results of the apex governing body for volleyball in India was announced today by Returning Officer Justice VS Siradhana (Retd) in pursuance to the order passed by Madras High Court yesterday.

Earlier on March 13, 2020, Madras High Court directed the authorities concerned to conduct elections to the Volleyball Federation of India on 15 March as scheduled but restrained from declaring the results. The VFI election matter reached the court as incumbent secretary Ramavatar Singh Jhakhar and president S Vasudevan issuded notices to conduct the same on March 12 and 15 respectively.

A single judge had on 11 March granted interim stay on the petition filed by the Goa Volleyball Association seeking to restrain the federation from proceeding with the elections. But in the appeal filed against the order of the single judge by the Tamil Nadu State Volleyball Association, a Division Bench of the Madras High Court restrained the announcement of results conducted on 12 March and the one on 15 March.

The decissive decision of the Madrad High Court today, thus, made Dr Samanta the first person from Odisha to be elected the president of Volleyball Federation of India. Earlier Late Biju Pattnaik headed Basketball Federation of India and KP Singhdeo functioned as the president of Rowing Federation of India.

VFI OFFICE-BEARERS FOR THE TERM 2020-2024:
President: Dr (Prof) Achyuta Samanta; Executive Vice-president: Raj Kumar; Vice-presidents (9): Rathin Roy Chaudhary, S Vasudevan, Vijaypal Singh, Anand Shankar Rajhans, Ram Lal Verma, PGVR Naidu, Susanto Bishwa Sarma, Dr Lalmalswama Naghaka, Gurjeet Singh Aujla; Secretary General: Anil Choudhary; Associate Secretaries (2): Kuldip Magotra, Muhammed Basheer Nalakath; Joint-Secretaries (7): Raman R Patel, Balasaheb Suryawanshi, Sube Singh, Jagir Singh Randhawa, L Baleshwor Singh, Amlan Chakraborty, Ramesh Babu; Treasurer: Sunil Kumar Tiwari.
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PHOTO: Undated file photo of new VFI President Dr Achyuta Samanta.