No headway in AIFF woman employee’s info leak matter

In a case that highlights how federations are indifferent towards safeguarding women staffers, the All-India Football Federation (AIFF) has maintained stoic silence after it filed a complaint with the Delhi Police’s cyber cell last year.

A woman employee had complained to AIFF’s Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) in May last year alleging she was being targeted by officials after confidential details, including her resume and offer letter, were leaked to a media website.

In February last year, the same employee had complained that a senior colleague had touched her inappropriately. However, no action was taken after the victim did not file an official complaint on assurances that she would be safeguarded.

The AIFF’s then acting secretary general M Satyanarayan, who is now the deputy secretary general, had held an internal meeting of section heads and threatened those responsible with dire consequences for leaking the documents.

The AIFF then released a statement and announced that they had registered an official complaint with the Cyber Crime Unit of the Delhi Police on the allegations made by the employee.

Satyanarayan had said, “We are fully committed to upholding the integrity and confidentiality of all our staff members who we keep in high regard. In light of the complaint received, we are doing everything to take things to a logical conclusion. Apart from the ICC meeting, we have already filed an official complaint with the Cyber Crime Unit of the Delhi Police who have assured us of all the help to get to the root of the problem at the earliest.”

However, it has been a year without any headway in the case. The AIFF has causally suggested that they have followed up with the Delhi Police about the status of the complaint at least two or three times. Satyanarayan was unavailable for comments.

A source claimed that the release and the subsequent complaint was only hogwash as it was done to show that the AIFF was acting tough and was siding with the complainant.

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