AIFF Presidentâs meeting with I-League clubs postponed
AIFF
I-League clubs will have to wait longer for their meeting with AIFF President Praful Patel following which they would come to know the future of the I-League ahead of next season. The president had earlier promised a meeting with seven I-League clubs agreeing to give them a roadmap of the league.
Things have gone from bad to worse for the I-League in the last week as the AIFF decided to take action against the clubs for withdrawing from the elite knockout tournament, Super Cup. And as if that wasnât enough, the dark future has just gone darker with AIFF now postponing the much-awaited meeting.
âFor the time it has been postponed. A new date may be decided on,â said AIFF general secretary Kushal Das, reported IANS.
Earlier, Patel had promised East Bengal, Mohun Bagan, Minerva Punjab FC, Aizawl FC, NEROCA FC, Gokulam FC and Churchill Brothers, that he would be meeting them between April 10 and 15. Now with the meeting postponed, the officials of the unified I-League clubs have also admitted that they havenât heard anything from AIFF about it.
In a letter sent to the I-League clubs, Das had previously written, âI am sending this communication on behalf of Patel. He will meet the clubs to discuss the road map for Indian football as communicated to me by the clubs on 20th March between 10th to 15th April (tentatively 14th April).â
One week after Minerva Punjab had communicated that they were shutting shop, NEROCA had followed suit threatening to do the same after talks about making I-League second tier intensified. However, Minerva finally found a venue to host their first AFC Cup match after initial complications, where club owner Minerva Punjab had stated was AIFF asking the Odisha Sports Department to halt proceedings.
However, after that issue was solved and AIFF promised Punjab to help them find a venue for other AFC Cup matches, the league committee meeting last Sunday has reportedly decided to take Bajaj to the Ethics Committee for his public comments on the federation.
The AIFF President Praful Patel, who recently became the first Indian ever to be nominated into the FIFA Council, had told IANS that he would find a solution to theÂ
 âWe will find a solution to the problem. The work is in progress. You should know, I am in the middle of elections. I have
âMy responsibility is Indian football. This position I have gained today would be also to use and help Indian football. I have to use this opportunity to take it to greater heights,â he had added.
