Hyderabad: An audit of the YMCA Secunderabad has brought to light several grave offences, of misappropriation of funds amounting to over Rs.74 lakh, fraud, and forgery, against the top leadership of the YMCA and the Telangana State Basketball Association (TSBA).
Eugene George, a senior basketball coach and referee with the TSBA, alleged that YMCA’s general secretary, Norman Swaroop Isaac, and his son, Abhishek Ronald Isaac, illegally operated the association’s bank account, making unauthorised withdrawals from the State Bank of India, Old MLA Quarters branch.
“These transactions were carried out without the required signatures, suggesting misrepresentation and deceit,” he told Deccan Chronicle.
Solomon Prem Kumar, former joint Secretary of TSBA, filed a complaint with the Narayanaguda Police Station, asserting that Norman and his son manipulated the accounts by falsely replacing the treasurer’s name with Abhishek’s. “This act not only violated proper banking procedures but also raised suspicions of cheating within the TSBA,” he said.
Further, the TSBA leadership is also accused of mismanaging referees’ funds, misusing official letterheads, and failing to account for officiating fees collected during various state and national-level basketball tournaments.
“The chairman of the technical commission of TSBA has mishandled technical officials’ funds, collecting cheques in his name and depositing them into his personal account,” Eugene George said.
He said that Norman forged the signatures of TSBA members in fake audited account statements to obtain funds of Rs. 74 lakh from the Sports Authority of Telangana (SAT).
Eugene George said that Norman, who was previously convicted, failed to disclose his history, as per rules for the general secretary election. “He secured his position fraudulently, withholding information about his conviction by the CBI Court in a Rs. 5-crore SBI scam. This conviction should have disqualified him from contesting the election, according to Olympic Association Rules and Regulations,” the coach said.
TSBA members are now calling for the dissolution of the leadership and formation of an ad hoc body with international players from Telangana and a member each from the Olympic Association and SAT to restore the TSBA’s integrity.
Players are also calling for a thorough investigation and corrective measures
