Rival TTFI factions pull in different directions

The simmering power struggle within the Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) has spilled into the open, with rival meetings convened by the federation’s top office-bearers taking contradictory positions on both authority and legality.

At an Annual General Meeting (AGM) convened by TTFI president Meghna Ahlawat, wife of former TTFI supremo Dushyant Chautala, in New Delhi on Wednesday, the house suspended secretary-general Kamlesh Mehta with immediate effect, according to multiple members present at the meeting. The AGM also handed over charge to Yatin Tipnis, who had lost to Mehta in the last election.

The move, however, came against the backdrop of a Special General Meeting (SGM) convened by the Mehta-led faction in Mumbai on January 17, which questioned the very legality of Wednesday’s AGM. That SGM, chaired by senior vice-president Padmaja Menon, had asserted that it was constitutionally valid and that the AGM notice issued by the president was not.

In her AGM notice dated January 6, Ahlawat cited the secretary-general’s inaction as the reason for convening the meeting herself.

“Despite the circulation of the proposed agenda points a few days ago and a formal request to the Secretary General to convene the Executive Committee Meeting and the Annual General Meeting on Wednesday, January 28, 2026, no response has been received from Mr Kamlesh Mehta, nor has any official notice been issued for the said meetings,” Ahlawat wrote to members.

However, the draft minutes of the January 17 SGM stated: “The House unanimously resolved that the AGM notice and agenda circulated by the president are unconstitutional and invalid. The present Special General Meeting, convened on requisition by more than one-third of members, is constitutional and legally valid.” Responding on Thursday, Mehta, an eight-time National champion and an Arjuna Award recipient, told The Hindu he was in the dark over his alleged suspension.

“I have not received any formal communication from either the president or anyone else at the TTFI so far,” Mehta said. “I had emailed the president in November conveying the importance of convening the AGM at the earliest. While it went unanswered, it was surprising and shocking to see her level such allegations against me when I read her January 6 communication.”

Ahlawat did not respond to queries from The Hindu. However, sources close to the president confirmed that Wednesday’s AGM had nullified all decisions taken at the January 17 SGM in Mumbai.

The escalating tussle has also cast uncertainty over the senior National championship, with the eight-day window in March at Indore — finalised at the January 17 meeting — now under a cloud. With both factions questioning each other’s legitimacy, Indian table tennis appears headed for yet another spell of administrative flux.