NEW DELHI: Close on the heels of the Kerala State Football Association’s official complaint to the All India Football Federation (AIFF) last Friday over being bypassed in conducting the ongoing Santosh Trophy in the state’s Malappuram district, it’s now the Jammu and Kashmir Football Association (JKFA) that has spoken out.
Earlier this month, the association lodged an official protest over the AIFF organising and conducting the May 10-19th AFC Pro Diploma Course (Module 1) at Srinagar without its knowledge or consent. The JKFA had further demanded that the module be deferred or cancelled.
This latest embarrassment to the AIFF caused by its office bearers at Football House led them to hastily shift the venue of the course to Chandigarh, but not before it faced more egg on its face with the ‘resignation’ of AIFF Technical Director and Head of Coach Education, Savio Mederia over the issue last week.
As part of the damage control, on Sunday, the media wing of the AIFF swiftly tweeted an official communication that the former 1990-2000s India midfielder and SAFF Cup-winning coach had not put in his papers and was still in his job but federation insiders claim that Medeira, miffed at being made the scapegoat for the officials’ goof up over choice of venue, had indeed mailed his official resignation to Football House. Medeira has been silent on the issue.
In an April 5, 2022 letter (JAKFA/10216-20) to AIFF president Praful Patel, the JKFA quoted a March 30 correspondence by Aman Dubey, Coordinator Coach Education & Grassroots, AIFF, where they were intimated of the Pro-Licencing Course scheduled at Srinagar’s TRC Football Stadium from May 10-19th. “They have scheduled the course under the aegis of Jammu & Kashmir Sports Council without the knowledge of JKFA,” the letter stated, once again highlighting how the officials in Football House are bypassing the state associations and contacting the state sports ministry or councils instead. The AIFF's high-handedness towards their member associations can be gauged by the fact that ZA Thakur, president of the JKFA, is also the current treasurer of the AIFF.
“If the AIFF starts authorizing any organization to conduct such courses or programmes without the knowledge of the member associations, it makes us lose our grounds and causes embarrassment to the member associations,” the JKFA further stated, reiterating, “If any organization or a club wants to conduct the said course or programme, they have to go through the associations as provided in the AIFF Constitution.”
“The J&K Sports Council does not have the mandate for such programmes which falls in the domain of the AIFF. The role of the JKFA has been undermined by the Coach Education dept of the AIFF which is unacceptable and the fraternity of the JKFA has taken strong exception of this act,” the letter said.
The JKFA once again reminded the AIFF “to direct the Coach Education department to abstain from taking such actions without the consent/request of the JKFA.”
Asking for the course scheduled from May 10-19 be deferred or cancelled, the JKFA hoped “that the Coach Education Department will take cognizance of the fact that the association concerned is to be taken on board before finalizing such programmes.”
