Kalyan Chaubey Faces Harassment Charge From Women's Committee Head; AIFF Chief Responds - READ Statement

In a letter addressed to the executive committee members, Alemao has accused Chaubey, Vice-President N.A. Haris and Deputy secretary general M. Satyanarayan of 'suppressing her voice' while Alemao raised concerns regarding women's football in India

Outlook Sports Desk

Updated on: 30 March 2026 8:48 pm

Published at: 30 March 2026 8:33 pm

AIFF President Kalyan Chaubey Photo: File

Summary of this article

AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey finds himself under the spotlight for the wrong reasons
AIFF Women's panel head accussed Chaubey of harassment
Chaubey has refuted the claims, stating Alemao's hidden agenda behind the allegation

The All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Kalyan Chaubey has come under fire after Valanka Alemao, head of the AIFF Women's Committee, has accused the former of harassment during an Executive Committee meeting.

Alemao, who is also the CEO of I-League side, Churchill Brothers, stated that she was 'heckled and harassed' during the meeting in New Delhi on Sunday.

In a letter addressed to the executive committee members, Alemao has accused Chaubey, Vice-President NA Haris and Deputy secretary general M. Satyanarayan of 'suppressing her voice' while also raising concerns regarding women's football in India.

“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,” she wrote.

Kalyan Chaubey Refutes Claims

The AIFF, in its reply, has refuted the claims alleged by Alemao. The board, in a statement, has said that Alemao and her family were pushing for Churchill Brothers' inclusion in the ISL 2025-26 season. However, when denied, the CEO of the club resorted to cheap tactics.

AIFF had finalized for a 14-team format for the 2025-26 ISL season with the approval from Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Furthermore, Inter Kashi's qualification for the ISL as per I-League's rules and CAS order, left no room for any changes. However, the AIFF board alleged that attempts were made by Alemao and her family to raise the matter through an Emergency Committee meeting in February, which were proved inconclusive by the Executive Committee.