Calcutta: East Bengal defender Arnab Mondal found himself in trouble on Monday when the All India Football Federation (AIFF) issued him a show-cause notice for his alleged racial remarks during last Saturday's I-League Derby in Siliguri. Mondal has been asked to reply by Thursday.
Mondal landed himself in trouble after Mohun Bagan's Trinidad and Tobago striker Cornell Glen accused the India defender of making racial comments. Later Mohun Bagan, too, filed an official complaint against Mondal.
But then, Mohun Bagan, too, had not much to rejoice over Mondal's trouble as their assistant coach Shankarlal Chakrabarty was also issued a show-cause notice to explain his position for his behaviour during the Derby.
Chakrabarty, according to reports filed by the referee and the match commissioner, used abusive language against the referee and also instigated the players. He was shown a red card by referee MB Santhosh Kumar.
Mohun Bagan coach Sanjay Sen is currently serving a four-match suspension for his criticism of the national body after an AFC Cup match a couple of months ago.
Sen was originally suspended for eight matches and was slapped with a Rs 10 lakh fine but later offered unconditional apology to get the ban and fine reduced.
To add to Mohun Bagan's woes, Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has slapped a fine of $10,000 on the green and maroon outfit for illegal use of a logo on the jersey of one of their players during an AFC Cup match.
Now there is more. In a development late on Monday, Fifa asked Bagan to cough up Rs 1.5 crore for not clearing dues of Gustavo Silva and Okwy Okonkwo Diamondstar. While Brazilian Gustavo played in the early part of this season, Diamondstar played in 2010-11 season.
Mondal's woes, however, could get compounded since, as per Fifa rules, players or officials found guilty of racial abuse in any game face at least a five-match ban. The banned player or official will also be prevented from being inside any soccer stadium during that period.
A second or major incident will result in the loss of points, expulsion from a tournament, or relegation - meaning a club could be dropped from a top league to one in a lower tier. Individual players, meanwhile, could face five-match bans for racist comments on the field.
