Kazan (Russia), Apr 27: The embattled Indian Hockey Federation came in for some fresh salvos from the FIH with the world body on Sunday threatening to scrap the Promoting Indian Hockey Project and the 2010 World Cup if the IOA fails to clean up the mess in IHF.

Expressing dismay at the state of Indian hockey just a day before an IOA meeting to discuss the bribe scandal involving suspended IHF secretary K Jothikumaran, FIH chief Els van Breda Vriesman said the world body can't work with a federation whose top official was under investigation following a TV sting operation.

"It (the sting operation) is never heard of in the world of field hockey. I wish the Indian hockey gets positive publicity and not this kind. We are in touch with both International Olympic committee and the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) how to proceed in such situation," she told PTI.

"Now the IOA has to manage Indian Hockey Confederation because I don't think we can work with a half-suspended Secretary General (K Jothikumaran) and a president probably linked because he protects his secretary in this case," she added.

Vriesman said she was not asking anybody to step down but the IOA or the Sports Ministry will have to intervene now if the future of Promoting Indian Hockey Project and 2010 World Cup is to be protected.

"The agenda before the Indian table is clear. But who is going to take the decisions. It is upto the Indian Olympic Association and the Sports ministry to handle the situation, it is not up to us.

FIH not to take action again Carvalho

Agencies

Kazan, Apr 27: The International Hockey Federation (FIH) has decided not to take any action against Joaquim Carvalho for his criticism of umpiring in the Chile Olympic Qualifiers, saying, it was satisfied with the explanation given by the Indian coach.

FIH president Els van Breda Vriesman said the governing body has received an official reply from the Indian Hockey Confederation and was satisfied with it.

"They have said that someone else wrote on coach's behalf and the coach hasn't said anything against the umpires. We have to believe him (coach) in this case," she said referring to the newspaper columns in which Carvalho made the comments after India lost the final of the qualifiers to Britain.

The loss meant that India failed to make the cut for Olympics for the first time in 80 years.

When pointed out that Carvalho also made televised comments against officials, Vriesman said the FIH was not interested in investigating the matter any further.

"We have to trust people," she said.

She, however, asserted that the FIH will keep an eye on him in future to see whether he violates any code of conduct.

"We expect a certain level of responsibility from every section of people involved in the sphere of international hockey. We are a family and our concern should be the interest of hockey," she said.

On return from Chile, Carvalho castigated the umpires for being unfair to the Indian players. He was also quoted as saying that FIH conspired to keep India out of the Olympics.

Vriesman ridiculed the reported "conspiracy theories".

"Why would we conspire against India whom we want to come up? We would have been delighted to have them at Beijing, but I congratulate the Great Britain team for their performance," she said.