IFA, Bengal set to undergo changes in top positions

According to the Hindustan Times, the Indian Football Association (IFA), the apex body for football in Bengal is set to undergo a change in management which will see the accommodation of the brothers of the state's Chief Ministers into positions of responsibility. Subrata Dutta, the current serving President of the IFA is set to be made the first Chairman of the organisation with the position being specifically created to retain him as a working member of the organisation. This might also be a way to ensure that Ajit Bannerjee, the head of Bengal Olympic Association (BOA) is given the highest position at the IFA too which has been a long standing vocal wish of his. Ajit Bannerjee is the brother of Chief Minister Mamata Bannerjee. This would make Ajit Bannerjee the first person to jointly head the BOA and the IFA. The IFA is a 125-year old body reminiscent of West Bengal's rich history and legacy of football. It currently has 286 clubs functioning under it and the organisation pre-dates the All India Football Federation by 55 years. So why this parallel move by Subrata Dutta who had already been serving as IFA President? The Hindustan Times quoted IFA General Secretary Utpal Ganguly as saying, "We didn’t want to lose the services of Mr Dutta, three generations of whose family has been involved with football in India and hence the decision." The justification was given at a media interaction in Kolkata on Sunday. Subrata Dutta is the senior Vice President of the AIFF and has been serving as IFA President since 2014. Before that, he had served as the administrative body's secretary from 2003-2008. Being made the Chairman, Dutta would be eligible for a four-year term in the organisation, be a member of the IFA's governing body and could possibly be asked to represent the IFA at National level meetings. This essentially means that his authority within the organisation would stay the same. Subject to the amendment of the IFA constitution, it may be made possible for Dutta to run for the post of the AIFF President in 2020 too despite his new position at the IFA.