‘CAB punishing Sultan for helping Sourav’

“Sultanda is suffering today simply because of the Sourav factor. Sourav was having a difficult time in his search for a suitable club. So,Sultanda came to his rescue,and helped him out by gifting him the Mohammedan Sporting ticket for attending the AGM. “As a result,this CAB administration,under Jagmohan Dalmiya,is punishing Sultanda for basically helping out Sourav,” Dutta told The Indian Express this evening.

Dutta,who represents Howrah District Sports Association (DSA),has the blessings of the Opposition and is expected to draw quite a few votes.

Yesterday,the CAB officials found a technical glitch in Ahmed’s representation form for CAB AGM. Filing from little-known Ariadaha Club,the Union Minister of State for Tourism mistakenly forgot to put the seal and address of Ariadaha Club on the nomination form,claim CAB insiders.

As per CAB’s rulebook,a technical blooper like this effectively renders the form defective,even as Dutta claims Dalmiya should have considered the “small mistake” and not taken it seriously on ethical grounds.

“If a club aligned to the reigning lobby had made this mistake,the CAB would have overlooked it and let off the club. Just because Sultanda is representing the Opposition,the CAB is making it doubly sure that the representation bid gets cancelled,” Dutta opined.

Ariadaha Club’s representative Tushar Sarkar is expected to meet Dalmiya & Co to discuss the issue.

A CAB insider said: “Two things can happen from here. If Tushar Sarkar refuses to admit the mistake at tomorrow’s meeting with Dalmiya,then Sultan Ahmed’s bid is unlikely to be cleared. But if Tushar Sarkar admits the mistake and requests for reconsideration,then there is a faint chance that the bid will be cleared.”