Proposed legislation in Kerala would bar party-political influence from sports governing bodies, reserving leadership roles for athletes, officials with government mandates, and those who have shaped allied disciplines. A bill focused on athlete welfare, sports science, modern infrastructure, and a broad development framework — the Kerala Sportspersons' Welfare, Sports Development and Governance Bill, 2026 — is set to come before the assembly when its session opens on Monday.
Requests from a number of athletes for a thorough restructuring of how sports are administered reached Sports Minister O J Janeesh before the decision was taken, according to officials.
Under the proposed legislation, a Sports Authority of Keralam would be established, its general committee drawing in athletes and specialists from areas including sports science, with the sports minister serving as chair. Four portfolios — Sports, Law, Finance, and General Education — carry ex-officio seats on the body, while the broader council draws one delegate from every sports association. The qualifying conditions under which members may be chosen are defined within the legislation.
Unnamed sources familiar with the proposal indicated that sports associations, under the new framework being considered, would be held to tighter standards of transparency around both their decision-making processes and their use of funds — a measure framed as bringing sports governance into line with state objectives. Those same sources raised separate questions about whether some associations had at times deviated from established player-selection processes, directed money toward purposes other than those originally designated, and distributed resources unevenly between programmes.
Council funding tends to flow toward associations that hold seats at the table, leaving those without a formal voice in the allocation process at a structural disadvantage when resources are distributed. A Sports Department official noted that athletes tend to be the ones who feel the consequences of such practices most directly.
Reforms spanning the Sports Councils and other governing bodies are expected to take shape as part of the wider restructuring Janeesh had previously called for. A probe by the Vigilance Department, conducted under the banner of 'Operation Kalikkalam', turned up financial and procedural irregularities across both district and state sports councils, forming the backdrop to the current move.
Overlapping responsibilities across the Sports Department, Sports Council, and Sports Kerala Foundation have drawn attention from those in senior positions, with the restructuring plan put forward specifically to address that redundancy.
Under the proposed legislation, sports infrastructure would be built and overseen through a combination of government bodies, institutional players, private investors, and joint public-private arrangements. Four groups — startups, technology providers, professional facility operators, and event organisers — gain access to the sports sector through this arrangement.
