Sunando Dhar, the interim general secretary of the AIFF, wrote to Fatma Samoura, the secretary general of FIFA, requesting that she “reconsider their decision to suspend AIFF.”
AIFF requests FIFA to consider the decision of suspension
In a decision that opened the door for Indian football’s return to the international fold after a brief period of exile, the Supreme Court on Monday disbanded the three-member Committee of Administrators (CoA) it had formed in May to manage the day-to-day operations of AIFF.
The decision was made in the “national interest,” according to the ruling by the Supreme Court bench led by Justice D Y Chandrachud, hence the ban has been removed and the players are unaffected.
A bench of Justices Chandrachud and A S Bopanna issued an order stating that “the mandate of the Committee of Administrators formed by the decision of this Court stands terminated.”
In a letter to Samoura on Tuesday, Dhar stated: “It is with extreme pleasure that we notify you that the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India (the “SC”) took up our matter and was delighted to transmit directions regarding the full repeal of the CoA mandate and, as a result, the AIFF having full charge of the AIFF’s daily lives via order dated 22.05.2022.”
We want FIFA, in particular the Bureau, to rethink its decision to suspend the AlFF in light of the aforementioned. We seek that an order to that effect be issued as soon as possible so that the AIFF may continue to oversee the smooth operation of football in India as the requirements outlined in your Letter for lifting the suspension have been met.
Since the suspension was made public on August 15, Gokulam Kerala, the champions of the Indian Women’s League, have been prohibited from competing in the Asian Club Championship, the men’s national team’s scheduled matches against Singapore and Vietnam have been postponed, and there is a chance that India will lose its right to host the U-17 Women’s World Cup in October.
