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Amid boos, Kalmadi thanks PM, Sonia et al
Thursday, October 14, 2010 10:34:26 PM,
IRNA
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New Delhi:
Amid loud boos from the packed crowd at the Jawaharlal Nehru
Stadium, a much-maligned Commonwealth Games Organising Committee
chairman Suresh Kalmadi Thursday said the event could not have
been held without the support of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
"The sporting extravaganza is coming to an end, and Delhi 2010 has
captured the imagination of the world. It has been a life changing
experience for the athletes. This is a new era of Indian sport,"
he said in a winding speech during which the crowd keep jeering at
him.
"This would not have been possible without Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh. I want to thank him for allocating Rs.670 crore (150
million dollars) for the training of athletes," he said.
While Kalmadi thanked virtually everyone in the Indian political
establishment for the success of the Games, the spectators
interrupted him repeatedly, forcing him to rush through his
speech.
But the people graciously applauded each time Kalmadi mentioned
the achievements of Indian athletes, who for the first time
finished second in the Commonwealth Games medals tally.
"I thank Soniaji and Rahul Gandhi for sitting in the general
stands and boosting the morale of the athletes," he said, and even
quoted Jawaharlal Nehru, the country's first prime minister.
The crowd showed its evident displeasure when Kalmadi thanked his
colleagues in the organising committee, which has been blamed for
the many delays in the preparations to the Games that gave India a
bad name.
The loudest boos were reserved for Lalit Bhanot, secretary general
of the organising committee and its unpopular spokesman.
Kalmadi also thanked Urban Development Minister S. Jaipal Reddy,
Sports Minister M.S Gill, Home Minister P. Chidambaram, Finance
Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel
and Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit.
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