Why are Indian politicians jumping the football bandwagon?

Being one, Bengaluru's epic win against Johor Darul Ta'zim thrilled me not just for the result and what it meant for football in India. It was also because, finally, an I-League club was getting some much-deserved attention. The week just seemed to be getting better as India gained 11 places in the FIFA rankings to land at 137 - their highest rank in 7 years. It felt too good to be true and as an Indian football fan, I was waiting for something to pull me down from cloud nine. And it did.

"मिशन 11 मिलियन" के तहत हम #भारत में 1.10 करोड़ युवाओं तक फुटबॉल को पहुचाने का प्रयास करेंगे; कुछ अच्छी खबरें सभी खेल प्रेमियों के लिए pic.twitter.com/UVFU4L1rkV

— Vijay Goel (@VijayGoelBJP) October 21, 2016

The tweet is loosely translated as, "Through “Mission 11 Million” we aspire to connect 1.10 crore Indian youths with football; some good news for all the sports lovers." "Mission 11 million" is an initiative started by the AIFF to promote football among youngsters. The AIFF have not disclosed their action plan for the policy, but according to Abhishek Yadav, who heads the scouting programme, "The idea is to increase the talent pool." - to inspire more youngsters to take up the sport and provide coaching at the grassroot level.

The first thing that struck me is that India has only some 3,000-odd certified coaches. The numbers 3,000 and 11 million just don't add up - if they don't magically create coaches soon, one coach will have the responsibility to train 3,500 kids.

Next up was Goel's attempt at glory through the FIFA U-17 Cup. “Kochi and Navi Mumbai have been given a green signal to host the 2017 FIFA U-17 Football World Cup," reads the text on the image. Is Mr. Goel trying to imply that this is an achievement? It makes absolutely no sense to celebrate the fact that we have been able to prepare a pitch worthy of a U-17 World Cup match.

The hypocrisy isn't restricted to just one party

However, using Indian football appears to be a habit that cuts across party lines and unites our netas, irrespective of their party affiliation.

As President of the AIFF, Honorable Congress MP and ex-aviation Minister Praful Patel has single-handedly “created a revolution” in Indian football. "Since taking over as the President of Indian Football’s Governing Body the virtuoso of Mr. Patel has enabled Indian Football to scale new heights," reads his description on the Federation's website.

Patel's only name to fame has been that he has overseen the creation and ascendancy of the Indian Super League and his push to promote it as India's premier league, pushing the already-established I-League down as a second-rate league.

To set things straight, I DO NOT HATE THE ISL. What they have done in the last two years is something that the I-League hasn't been able to do in 10 - attract people to the stadium. The ISL has its own problems, but scrapping one league for the other is not a sane move.

If the AIFF refuses to allow lower-league clubs to gain promotion to the ISL, that might just be the final nail in Indian football's coffin - we will never get a story as romantic as the Leicester fairytale. On the other hand, if the ISL is shut down, the huge fanbase they have created over such a short while might never follow the sport that I love again.

It appears this is what football has become now - yet another platform where political parties can push their own agendas and try to score points. If they do really care about Indian football, it's time to take a stand and come up with a legitimate solution to solve Indian football's biggest problem.

That is why this Bengaluru win is a watershed moment for Indian football. It is the first time after a long when the entire nation came together to feel pride in the beautiful game.

China has gone down that road, and has attracted some top-notch talent to its shores at their very prime - Graziano Pelle, Ezequiel Lavezzi, Hulk and Ramirez are not washed up players who are at the end of their careers. Agreed their motivation was no doubt the enormous cash bags thrown at them, but China does come out on top of the bargain.

The ISL paradox

Firstly, if they are made the top division, they would have to shell out more money to pay the foreign players if the duration of the league is increased. If stars like Forlan don't show up, the matches will only be greeted by empty seats.

Secondly, there is a limit on the number of foreign players they can bring in if they want to become India's premier league and representative in international tournaments.

Thirdly, it is easier currently for the ISL to attract major labeled stars because when all is said and done it's not a league it's a cup competition that lasts just three months. That 'Indyeah love' may fade once the stars are asked to stay over for more than half a year.

Lastly, FIFA and football are by no means clean but even Sepp Blatter and Gianni Infantino have called I-League the official league of the country, the latter doing it in he presence of Praful Patel. So if even FIFA realizes that the ISL is not the way forward for Indian Football, how naive are we to believe that it will lead us to the promised land?