The All India Football Federation (AIFF) was mired in controversy on Monday after its women's committee head, Valanka Alemao, accused AIFF President Kalyan Chaubey of harassment and intimidation during an executive committee meeting.
Alemao, who is also an executive member of the AIFF and CEO of I-League club Churchill Brothers, said she was "heckled and harassed" during the meeting in New Delhi on Sunday.
In a letter to committee members, she accused Chaubey, vice president N.A. Haris, and deputy secretary general M. Satyanarayan of using an intimidating tone and making disrespectful remarks to "suppress her voice" while she raised concerns about women's football administration.
"I wish to place on record the entirely disgusting behaviour of the AIFF President Mr Kalyan Chaubey, Vice President Mr N. A. Haris and Deputy Secretary General M Satyanarayan. I feel deeply prejudiced and I found that several attempts were made by the President to suppress my voice. The President made remarks against me which were unnecessary and disrespectful. He along with the DSG raised his tone time and again beyond an acceptable decibel with the intention to intimidate me. Throughout the course of the meeting, I was consistently targeted," Alemao wrote.
The allegations come after tensions over what Alemao described as a "series of blunders" during the Indian women's team’s Asian Cup campaign in Australia, including logistical and management issues.
"The whole country was shocked when ill-fitting kits were sent for the senior women's team during the AFC Qualifiers 2026 in Australia. The chief coach was changed just one and a half months before the start of the qualifiers. The preparatory phase was marred by deviating from what was decided in an earlier meeting. All this happened without the AIFF Women's Football Committee, of which I am the Chairperson. I was not informed and was not asked to provide consultation about the operations of the team. As the Chairperson of the Women's Football Committee and an EC member, it is my duty to write to the President of the AIFF and to all EC Members seeking an enquiry into the preparation and participation of the Women's team in the 2026 World Cup," she added.
The AIFF denied Alemao’s claims, accusing her and her family of pressuring the federation to include Churchill Brothers in the Indian Super League (ISL).
Alemao is CEO of the Goa-based club, owned for decades by entrepreneur and politician Churchill Alemao, a former Goa Football Association president and chief minister of the state.
Churchill Brothers claimed they won the second-tier I-League in 2024-25, but a Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruling awarded the title and ISL promotion to Inter Kashi due to a points dispute.
"The All India Football Federation categorically rejects the recent claims made by Executive Committee Ms. Valanka Alemao and wishes to place certain facts on record in the interest of transparency and clarity.
"Between January 8, 2026, and February 15, 2026, Ms. Alemao and members of her family exerted sustained pressure on the AIFF to facilitate the inclusion of Churchill Brothers FC Goa in the Indian Super League (ISL) through exceptional means," the AIFF said. "However, the federation was unable to accommodate this request due to existing rules, regulations, and commitments made to stakeholders."
I-League regulations state that the season winner earns promotion to the ISL. According to CAS, the winners were Inter Kashi, and AIFF could not include Churchill Brothers without violating the rules.
"On January 6, 2026, in the presence of all stakeholders, it was announced that the upcoming ISL season would consist of 14 teams and 91 matches in a truncated format. Based on this structure, the AIFF subsequently obtained the required approval from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Following this, several legal petitions were filed by members of Ms. Alemao's family. Despite being an Executive Committee member of the AIFF, Ms. Alemao repeatedly attempted to influence proceedings during official meetings with the objective of securing the inclusion of her club in the ISL," the AIFF said in its statement.
"Ms. Alemao also strongly pressed for the convening of an Emergency Executive Committee meeting on the matter. In response to this request, the AIFF scheduled an Emergency Executive Committee meeting on February 9, 2026. However, the meeting could not proceed as the required quorum was not met due to non-participation by members. Subsequently, Ms. Alemao individually contacted members of the Executive Committee and sought to convene another Emergency Executive Committee meeting on February 12, 2026. The meeting was held with full attendance, and after due deliberation, the Executive Committee rejected the proposal for Churchill Brothers inclusion in the ISL," it added.
