Kerala Blasters file appeal against AIFF charge for Bengaluru FC walkout

The fine imposed is the highest ever on an Indian club.

Kerala Blasters have confirmed that they filed an appeal against the disciplinary action charge on the club for their walkout in the Indian Super League (ISL) playoff game against Bengaluru FC last month.

This comes after the AIFF Disciplinary Committee handed them major punishments for the walkout. Among those included a whopping ₹4 crore fine for abandoning the game against Bengaluru, who won it 1-0 thanks to a controversial goal from Sunil Chhetri.

Everything you must know about Kerala Blasters' walkout controversy

The Yellow Army were furious with referee Crystal John’s decision to let the controversial goal stand in their playoff clash against Bengaluru FC. In extra time, just as Kerala Blasters were preparing their wall for a free-kick, Chhetri took a quick free-kick with John’s permission to catch them off-guard.

This resulted in head coach Ivan Vukomanovic ordering his players to leave the field and go back into the dressing room as a mark of protest. They refused to come out despite pleas from ISL officials. As a result, the match was abandoned and Bengaluru FC went through to the ISL semi-finals as the winners.

Dividing opinions

A lot of debate has taken place over whether walking out of the game was the right thing to do by the Blasters. While the majority of their supporters are strongly behind Vukomanovic, many others in the Indian football fraternity were angered by the decision.

Vukomanovic was also charged separately for his major role in them abandoning the game, which is a chargeable offense in the AIFF books. The manager reportedly risks having to pay a ₹10 lakh fine and be suspended for as many as 10 competitive games if he refuses to give a public apology for his actions.

Kerala Blasters have not appealed on Vukamonovic’s behalf, but the AIFF charge put on the club itself. It’s clear that they feel that the ₹4 crore fine is way too much, being the highest ever imposed on an Indian club. The AIFF’s appeal committee will now oversee this matter before deciding either to reduce the charges or stay with the charges made by the AIFF disciplinary committee.