AICF Treasurer Kishor M Bandekar admitted that staff salaries for February were due, apart from other payments.
When contacted, Secretary Bharat Singh Chauhan maintained the clearance of cheques to pay staff salary and other cheques issued by AICF depended on its banker, Indian Bank.
“Indian Bank officials have told me that clearance of the AICF cheques will be done after getting the opinion from its legal department,” Chauhan told IANS.
“The bank officials had seen news reports on AICF elections and its subsequent cancellation. Hence, they want to get their legal department’s opinion on clearing the AICF cheques,” Chauhan added.
He too admitted that salaries of AICF officials and other payments were pending owing to this situation.
Bandekar told IANS: “The AICF was not informed about the banker’s decision. Chauhan should have informed the Federation about this.”
“The staff salaries for February are due. And even March is coming to an end and salaries will be due soon. There are other dues like pending hotel bills for meetings held, travel bills, payments to be made to players. I will speak to the bankers and get clarity on the issue,” he added.
The AICF Secretary and Treasurer are two authorised signatories for signing cheques on behalf of AICF. However, Chauhan does not recognise Bandekar as AICF Treasurer.
The Madras High Court had appointed retired Supreme Court Justice F.M. Ibrahim Kalifulla last month as Returning Officer for AICF elections and declared Ajay H. Patel elected as President, Chauhan as Secretary, Naresh Sharma as Treasurer, M. Arun Singh as Joint Secretary, and Vipnesh Bharadwaj as Vice President.
Even though the new office-bearers assumed office the High Court set aside their election and asked Kalifulla to convene a Special General Body Meeting to conduct fresh elections after an appeal preferred by AICF President P.R.Venketrama Raja.
The Supreme Court dismissed an appeal by Chauhan against the High Court’s order.
While Raja contends that the old management is back in AICF and a three-member committee appointed by him earlier will run its day-to-day affairs, Chauhan does not agree with that view.
Chauhan contends that during the pendency of the election process, it is only the General Body that can take decisions on all AICF expenditures and Raja is not allegedly allowing AICF to call a GB meeting.
He contended that the High Court while setting aside the election of new office- bearers has not said that the earlier ones — Raja as President, Bandekar as Treasurer (authorised to sign cheques) and others — could reassume office.
–IANS<br>vj/tjb
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