Kathmandu, October 28
A majority of members of the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) will open the ANFA headquarters.
Eleven executive committee members, including the senior vice-president, made a written demand for a meeting. The president did not call one. They are now preparing to hold the meeting themselves.
Article 31(2) of the ANFA statute covers this case. It says the executive committee meeting must be called if one-third or more of its members demand it in writing.
Under this provision, the members demanded a meeting 22 days ago. But President Pankaj Bikram Nembang did not call one for 21 days. Senior Vice-President Bir Bahadur Khadka said they are therefore going ahead with the meeting.
“As the statute provides, we waited 21 days for the meeting. But the president did not call it. Now I will lead and call the meeting. We will take the necessary decisions,” he told Onlinekhabar.
The members are now opening the lock on the headquarters at Satdobato, Lalitpur. ANFA central member Tikaram Lama said they will open the lock and issue the letter for a meeting on October 30.
Lama said the meeting on the 13th will write letters to the government, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and FIFA. The letters will ask them for facilitation.
There is also a criminal case. On the recommendation of Nepal Police’s Central Investigation Bureau (CIB), the Lalitpur District Government Attorney’s Office filed charges. The charges are for match fixing and fraud.
The case is against ANFA President Pankaj Bikram Nembang, General Secretary Kiran Rai, Treasurer Rabindra Joshi and Accountant Sanjiv Pandey.
Joshi and Pandey have been released on bail. Nembang and Rai have not appeared in court.
FIFA has suspended ANFA since June 24, citing third-party interference.
