NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to hear a plea of Delhi Football Club challenging the allegedly illegal continuation of Praful Patel as president the All India Football Federation and AIFF committee he heads.
PTI reports that a Bench headed by Chief Justice NV Ramana was told by lawyer Prashant Bhushan that an illegal committee is continuing to head the AIFF due to the non-hearing of a petition of the football body against the 2017 decision of the Delhi High Court.
“In 2017, the last election of the football federation was set aside by the Delhi High Court. When an SLP was filed in this court, this court appointed a committee headed by former election commissioner and sports secretary SY Quraishi to prepare a Constitution for AIFF in accordance with the Sports Code. Even that has been done long ago..,” Bhushan told the Bench, which also comprised Justices Krishna Murari and Hima Kohli.
Because of the non-hearing, the same illegal committee has been continuing at the helm for over the last 10 years, Bhushan argued, and sought a hearing next week. “Ok, we will see,” said the Bench. An interim application was filed by the Delhi Football Club in the pending appeal before the Supreme Court.
In a related matter, the Union Sports Ministry had filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court stating that Praful Patel has no mandate to continue as AIFF president as he has already served three terms and the national body should hold elections without further delay.
The affidavit was filed concerning a Special Leave Petition (SLP) filed by the AIFF, the Sports Ministry said Patel’s tenure violated the Sports Code. “…the term of the existing committee (of AIFF) is already over, and the existing president (Praful Patel) has completed more than 12 years as president, the petitioner (AIFF) should hold elections without further delay as per extant instructions contained under Sports Code and the instructions issued by the Answering Respondent (sports ministry) from time to time,” the ministry’s affidavit said.
Patel completed his three terms and 12 years as AIFF president in December 2020, the maximum permitted to a national sports federation (NSF) chief under the Sports Code.
