Indian football: Is Baichung ready to fight for the AIFF hot seat again?

Can Baichung Bhutia be the saviour that Indian football needs as the next president of All India Football Federation (AIFF) – or just happy to play the rabble rouser? The former India captain and a legend of the game came down hard against the current regime at a well attended media conference in Kolkata on Friday but left it open-ended as to whether he would be ready to throw his hat in the ring once again.

 Three years back, Bhutia – the most recognisable face in the game in the country before Sunil Chhetri’s arrival – lost the presidential election 33-1 votes to Kalyan Chaubey. It’s no secret that Chaubey, a former India goalkeeper-turned-politician, had the mandate of the BJP government in the centre which secured the votes for him and it’s a humiliation which did not sit well with the ‘Sikkimese Sniper.’

 With the current AIFF dispensation under siege on multiple fronts – ranging from corruption charges, various governance issues and the Supreme Court hearing on July 15 critical to it’s existence – Bhutia went on a timely tirade against Chaubey. His personal attack on the current AIFF president almost took the hue of a political rally but asked if he would be ready to take up the challenge again, Bhutia was ambiguous: ‘’If there is interference from the government and other various things, then I don’t think I would want to get into fighting an election for the AIFF president.

Kalyan Chaubey beats Bhaichung Bhutia, AIFF gets first player president

 ‘’But yes, if everybody feels that I can do a job, I am okay with it... If somebody is going to sincerely do good for Indian football, I am more than happy to support,’’ he said. It’s an Utopian idea as the top officialdom in Indian sports fraternity has been always ruled by the political class – with the likes of the late Priyaranjan Das Munshi and Praful Patel being the two previous, long serving presidents of AIFF.  

 Interestingly enough, Bhutia himself is no stranger to electoral politics – albeit all his four attempts to contest elections ending his defeats. After losing a Lok Sabha poll on Trinamool Congress ticket first in 2014 from Darjeeling constituency, he lost the 2016 Assembly elections from Siliguri for TMC and then again the Sikkim assembly elections on behalf of the Pawan Chamling-led Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) last year. The reverses has left him cagey from any further flirtation with electoral politics, but then he is clearly not averse to the powerplay of football – always his familiar territory.

  There can be, of course, no denying the fact that the positive vibes around Indian football in the first year of Chaubey’s administration in 2022-23 seems like a distant dream. The Blue Tigers qualifed for their second straight AFC Asian Cup finals and won two back-to-back international events at home – till reality hit home strongly.

The senior national team’s ranking has slipped from 99 to 133 at the moment with a miserable run last year, the federation’s governance has become a butt of ridicule over their heavy financial loss due to a compensation for sacked coach Igor Stimac, flipflop over awarding the I-League crown and now the question mark over the next cycle of Indian Super League (ISL).  

 “The AIFF today is a circus. And when you put jokers in those positions, it’s bound to become a circus,” Bhutia said without taking names, while the AIFF was quick to give a riposte to his allegations.

Baichung Bhutia addresses the media in Kolkata

In a press release issued on Friday evening, Chaubey said nobody had stopped Bhutia – his peer and once captain in the national team – for airing his grievances as a member of the AIFF executive committee. “As a member of the (AIFF) Executive Committee, Mr Bhutia has access to appropriate and empowered platforms to express his views.

“However, since his defeat in September 2022 (AIFF president's election), he has consistently and deliberately made baseless allegations and presented a distorted image of the AIFF. These actions tarnish the federation's reputation and Indian football internationally,” said Chaubey, who invited Bhutia to the upcoming AIFF Executive Committee meeting on July 2.

“He is most welcome to present any constructive proposals, which will be duly deliberated upon in the spirit of transparency, collaboration and collective development of Indian football,” Chaubey said in an AIFF statement.

 The bickering goes on while it seems future tense for Indian football. The future looks bleak – and it’s anybody’s guess even if a Bhutia can work out a recipe for revival!