Chennai, April 22:: K Jothikumaran, who quit as the IHF General Secretary after being shown accepting cash in a television sting operation, on Tuesday claimed that he was innocent and accused the news channel of deliberately distorting his discussions.

“I find that the entire discussions were recorded stealthily, willfully distorted and maliciously edited to show an entirely wrong picture,” Jothikumaran said in a statement.

“This is an attempt of unwarranted character assassination to create media sensation and is highly condemnable,” he said.

Jothikumaran, who was occupying the post since 1994, said he would stay away from the Indian Hockey Federation till his innocence was proved.

“I have always maintained high moral standards and have been very transparent in all hockey related matters.

“However, I prefer to keep away from Indian Hockey administration till such time my name is cleared entirely and my innocence is proved. I have full faith in K P S Gill, President, and IHF to look into this matter and render justice,” he said.

He, however, insisted that he had no role in team selection in the Indian Hockey Federation and was under the impression that the money given to him was for a six-nation tournament to be organised in India.

“The fact remains that I have never been involved in the selection of national teams especially for the past one year since I am occupied with the Project Promoting Indian Hockey and preparation for World Cup 2010 Delhi."