Proof against racial abuse, confirms Das

PANAJI: There is no love lost between Bob Houghton and the All-India Football Federation (AIFF).
AIFF general secretary Kushal Das was on a two-day familiarisation visit to Goa and caught up with all stakeholders. He dined with high-ranking officials and held unofficial discussions with everyone, yet could not spare any time for Houghton.
Houghton, who has been in Goa since March 2, did not make any effort to either contact Das or clear the air that remained foggy ever since the AIFF executive committee decided to seek legal opinion over Houghton's foul-mouthed racial rant against referee Dinesh Nair.
Significantly, the coach was conspicuous by his absence for the all-important Dempo-Mohun Bagan encounter at the Nehru stadium in Fatorda on Thursday, at a time when AIFF officials had made their presence felt. Houghton had sat through the Churchill Brothers-Mumbai FC clash on Wednesday.
"It is not true that we are trying to use the racial abuse complaint as a tool to get rid of Houghton," Das told TOI while he was in the city to meet Sporting Clube de Goa president Peter Vaz and other officials.
Referee Dinesh Nair, it may be recalled, had lodged a written complaint alleging the coach had abused him during the half time of India's international friendly against Yemen on October 13, yet it was only at the last executive committee meeting - four months after the incident - that the AIFF decided to act.
"We needed some time to do our own investigations and since the Indian team was preparing for the Asian Cup in Doha (where India were participating for the first time in 27 years), it was not prudent at that time to rake up the issue.
"However, we decided to seek legal opinion only after investigating the incident. There is the match commissioner's report which confirms the abuse. And to my mind there is no doubt that the exact words he uttered were purely a case of racial abuse," said Das.
Significantly, since the executive committee meeting last month, the AIFF has neither sought an explanation from Houghton over the abuse or the poor showing at the Asian Cup where India shipped in 13 goals in three group matches.
"We are waiting for the legal opinion which should be ready in the next couple of days. We do not want to hurry with anything at this stage and I must say that our lawyers are examining all aspects. There is a democratic process and Houghton will be given a chance to explain," said Das.