Nisha missed out for Tania

Calcutta: The newly formed Chess Players? Association of India (CPAI) has taken up the case of Nisha Mohta?s surprise omission from the India?s women?s squad for the Asian Championship in Lebanon.

?It is the norm that players with elo rating above 2300 choose themselves automatically. Only one player below such rating can be send per country, said CPAI?s new president GM Dibyendu Barua here Monday.

The argument is how did Tania Sachdev (2256) get preference for this lone slot above Nisha (2286)?

In the last national A meet Nisha finished third, Tania seventh. That alone could have pushed Tania out of contention. But while the CPAI and Nisha contest that the AICF should have taken the initiative to put forth Nisha?s name (because she has a high elo rating), AICF secretary P.T. Ummer Koya told The Telegraph over phone from New Delhi that it should actually have been the player?s initiative.

?This category is called a donor?s entry,? Koya said. Hence the participant has to pay her way through. ?This category can also be filled up by the applicant herself, but going to the relevant website and filling in the relevant form.

?Tania contacted the organisers of the Asian meet on her own, Nisha did not. There is nothing the AICF can do about this and it has little to do with the elo ratings of the of the two players,? Koya said.

While Koya says this should be the player?s initiative, the CPAI insists that traditionally filling up of this category is done with the AICF?s help.

?Perhaps, Nisha is paying the price for joining the players? body,? Barua said. Nisha, a product of The Telegraph Schools chess championship also felt the same way.

The CPAI was formally launched Monday. Barua informed that Viswanathan Anand has also agreed to participate in the association actively, though he wished to stay away from the executive council.

THE OFFICE-BEARERS

President: Dibyendu Barua; Secretary: P. Harikrishna; Treasurer: Atanu Lahiri; Executive members: Surya Sekhar Ganguly, Abhijit Kunte, P. Konguvel, Tejas Bakre, R.B. Ramesh, Rahul Shetty, Neeraj Mishra.