AIFF CoA: Role of the three-member committee in the AIFF dispute

A brief overview of the current situation on the administration of affairs in the AIFF and the role of the newly constituted CoA

Praful Patel

The news of Praful Patel''s impending end as the President of the AIFF has come as a relief to many. The Supreme Court has directed the constitution of a three-member committee to look into the administration of the AIFF until fresh elections are held. We take a look at the background of the long saga and the temporary role of the members appointed as part of the CoA.

Background

This issue revolves around the extended serving term of Praful Patel who has been the President of the AIFF for three terms since being elected first back in 2009. In 2017, the Supreme Court stayed an HC order which rendered the election of Praful Patel to the post of AIFF President as invalid. This case was undecided until mid-2020, which was when Praful Patel's term was supposed to end following which elections were to take place. Patel utilised this opportunity of the ongoing court case to remain in his position as the President and did not vacate his chair despite repeated reminders and requests. It led to a significant internal turmoil as there were several individuals who were dissatisfied with his lack of integrity that was costing the AIFF precious time.

The Supreme Court ultimately responded this month and took considerable action on the matter. A three-judge bench comprising J. DY Chandrachud, J. Surya Kant and J. PS Narasimha ordered that Patel had to step down from his position immediately. It also stated that a three-member committee would have to take charge of the functioning of the AIFF until new elections were held.

Good that SC today superceded the Praful Patel headed exec body of All India Football federation&has appointed a Committee of Administrators of Justice Anil Dave, SY Qureshi&Bhaskar Ganguly& asked them to conduct fresh elections.
All sports Federations are captured by Politicians
— Prashant Bhushan (@pbhushan1) May 18, 2022

SC's Observation

Making serious observations on the matter the bench stated that "The erstwhile committee which shall stand superseded by the terms of this present order shall forthwit handover the charge to the CoA." There was also mention of how the ongoing state of affairs was not in the best interests of the Indian Football Federation. The bench also took cognisance of the continuous delay tactics adopted by the AIFF to postpone the elections and refuted any arguments made by their lawyers regarding the external repercussions of constituting an external committee to oversee the functioning of the AIFF.

Role of Committee

The committee will be made up of Justice (retd) Dave, Bhaskar Ganguly, former captain of the Indian football team and Dr SY Qureshi, former Chief Election Commissioner. Both SY Qureshi and Bhaskar Ganguly have been part of the 2017 constituted committee as well.

The foremost role of the committee will be to oversee the governance and daily administration of the AIFF. This will include the management and execution of all roles that were held by the erstewhile Executive Committee which have now been handed over to the COA.

The other crucial role of the constituted committee will be to assist the Supreme Court in the adoption of a new constitution. The reason for appointing experienced members is that they will be able to provide appropriate suggestions and recommendations to the Supreme Court along with shaping the future of the AIFF to avoid the recent debacle. The committee will also be tasked with conducting the elections this year. Given that there is no executive committee in place to oversee the entire proceeding, they will be made to prepare the electoral rolls after the constitution comes into play.

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