New Delhi: Anilkumar Prabhakaran’s appointment as the All India Football Federation’s secretary general was in contravention of the sports ministry’s circular issued on February 28, 2022, that is in conjunction with the National Sports Code, the Delhi High Court has said.
While hearing a plea on Wednesday from Delhi FC director Ranjit Bajaj challenging the appointment, Justice Sachin Datta observed that Anilkumar’s conduct to resign from AIFF’s executive committee and take up the salaried job of secretary was “cleary in the teeth of the circular/communication dated 28.02.2022”, before issuing a stay order on the appointment and listing it for final hearing on April 8.
The sports ministry’s had issued a circular on appointment of Chief Executive Officer (CEO) in National Sports Federations said: “It has been observed that upon being ineligible for reelection, the outgoing office bearers come back as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Federation, which is against the spirit of the guidelines limiting age and tenure of office bearers of IOA and NSFs of the Sports Code 2011.
“This issue has been considered in the Ministry and it has been decided that any person who has held an elected post in IOA and an NSF in the past, should not be appointed as CEO.
“The post of CEO is an administrative position for which the person selected is paid by the IOA and NSF as per the terms and conditions of engagement. The above inston shall be adhered to scrupulously by IOA and all recognized NSFs.”
Being an NSF, the AIFF is obligated to follow the sports ministry’s guidelines and the Sports Code, which it didn’t adhere to on this instance, ruled Justice Datta.
“The circular/ communication dated 28.02.2022 which is addressed to all the National Sports Federations unambiguously states that “any person who has held an elected post in IOA and an NSF in the past, should not be appointed as CEO. The post of CEO is an administrative position for which the person selected is paid by the IOA and NSF, as per the terms and conditions of engagement,” Datta observed, in its interim order.
“In the present case, there is no dispute that prior to his appointment as Secretary General of the All India Football Federation, the respondent no.2 (Anilkumar) was an elected member of AIFF’s Executive Committee. In fact, it is the case of the respondent no.2 itself that it resigned from the post of elected member of AIFF’s Executive Committee, to assume the assignment/ job of “Secretary General”. Such conduct is clearly in the teeth of the circular/communication dated 28.02.2022.”
Conflict of interest
Petitioner Bajaj had contended that the circular was applicable to cases where any elected office bearer sought to circumvent the age and tenure restrictions and not to any other situation.
Through senior advocate Rahul Mehra and lawyer Shivam Singh, Bajaj had pointed out a conflict of interest on account of Anilkumar’s affiliation with Scoreline Sports, a ‘Sports for Development’ company that organised the Super League Kerala last year.
Justice Datta agreed to it, saying: “As noted, the same is belied by the plain language of the proscription contained in the said circular/ communication dated 28.02.2022. Also, as noticed, the purport of the circular/ communication dated 28.02.2022 is also evidently to act as a safeguard against any “conflict of interest”.
“…it is impermissible for the respondent no.2 (Anilkumar), to take up the position of “General Secretary” of the respondent no.1 (AIFF). The stand of the Union Of India is consistent with the language and spirit of the circular/ communication dated 28.02.2022 as well as the NSDCI (Sports Code).”
After the interim order, the AIFF postponed its next executive committee meeting that was scheduled to be held at its headquarters in New Delhi on April 7.
Delhi HC observed that Anilkumar P’s conduct to resign from AIFF’s executive committee and take up the salaried post of secretary was “cleary in the teeth” of the sports ministry circular issued in 2022 and issued a stay order on the appointment. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
