Revealed: How AIFF hired an unqualified person as Head of Sports Science & Medicine

As per documents presented in Delhi HC, former Secretary General Shaji Prabhakaran is alleged to have favoured his business partner to get the pivotal position.

In yet another turbulent chapter in the ongoing saga at the All India Football Federation (AIFF), allegations have surfaced suggesting that the former Head of Sports Science and Medicine, Dr. Sandeep Kumar, lacked the necessary qualifications required as per the advertisement put out by AIFF and failed to meet the standards set by the Indian Society of Exercise and Medicine (ISSEM).

These claims have emerged from a collection of documents and email exchanges presented as evidence by the AIFF in a case against former Secretary General Shaji Prabhakaran, which is being heard in the Delhi High Court. Shaji Prabhakaran has been alleged by the federation to have made favours to his friend cum ‘business partner’ for recruitment in a critical position in the AIFF.

Dr. Sandeep Kumar was working with the medical team for the senior men’s national team and youth teams before the matter came to light. Khel Now has obtained documents which were submitted by the AIFF to the Delhi High Court on 20th December 2023 as one of the reasons for the sacking of former Secretary General which was challenged by the latter on 8th December. These documents shed light on the shoddy recruitment processes within the AIFF. It is worth noting that ex-Secretary General Shaji Prabhakaran and Dr Sandeep Kumar served as directors of Delhi-based club Delhi United and worked as business partners before holding key positions at the AIFF.

The story came to light when the President of ISSEM Dr. Hanjabam Sharma raised a red flag on the appointment of Kumar and wrote a letter to the AIFF on 22 August, 2023, seeking information about qualifications, experience and any prerequisites required for the post of Head of Medical and Sports Science.

The AIFF did not reply to the initial letter leading to the President of ISSEM writing another letter inquiring about the same details on 21st September 2023.

AIFF has alleged that Shaji Prabhakaran did not follow the due procedures required and offered Dr. Kumar a contract without proper screening of documents. The AIFF medical committee and the HR department were not kept in the loop and the entire episode only came to light after the letter from the ISSEM.

Internal Investigation by AIFF

The HR department of the AIFF started an internal investigation on Dr. Sandeep Kumar with the medical team on 13 November, 2023, a copy of the e-mail communication has been accessed by Khel Now. The head of the medical committee, Dr. Kiran Kulkarni of AIFF requested a list of documents as per the eligibility criteria set out by the federation in their advertisement for Phase 1 of the inquiry procedure.

By 27 November, the HR department did not receive the list of documents from Dr. Kumar despite two reminders by that time. However, by 29 November, the HR department forwarded the list of documents shared by Dr. Kumar to the head of the AIFF medical committee.

Dr. Kiran Kulkarni in a follow-up e-mail, made observations and concluded that Dr. Sandeep Kumar did not have the required qualification for the post of the Head of Sports Science and Medicine, stating that the appointment is Invalid and against statutory guidelines.

“1) NO National Medical Council (NMC) Recognised or Valid Post Graduate Degree/Diploma in Sports Medicine as mentioned under Qualifications in the advertisement, which is mandatory to be the Head of Sports Science as given in the post in AIFF.

2) Romanian Medical Degree Certificate obtained from abroad in India is equivalent to MBBS Degree only.

3) Delhi Medical Council (DMC) Registration certificate is registered in 2009 and has not been renewed since then.

4) Qualifications and attending short courses conducted by AFC or other organization seminars/conferences for 1-2 days might offer knowledge, but true expertise was lacking in terms of a valid NMC recognised Post Graduation Degree/Diploma in Sports Medicine. Both serve different purposes in one’s professional development.”

Moreover, Dr. Kumar’s registration and Delhi Medical Council certificate has expired in 2014 and has not been renewed, concluded Dr. Kulkarni. He makes the following conclusions:

“1) Dr Sandeep Kumar is NOT a Qualified Sports Medicine Specialist as per documents furnished by him to the HR AIFF as per NMC norms and also the AIFF Advertisement clearly mentioned the Qualifications required as “NMC Recognised Degree/Diploma in Sports Medicine”.

2) Delhi Medical Council Registration Certificate is Invalid as it was registered in 2009. (DMC rules require all to register and renew Medical Degree once in 5 years.)

3) Keeping all the above points in view and going through all the documents submitted by Dr Sandeep Kumar, the committee’s final conclusion is –

Dr. Sandeep Kumar does not meet the required qualifications for the Head of Sports Science and Medical post as per the AIFF Advertisement and National Medical Council (NMC) norms.

Additionally, issue is the validity of his Delhi Medical Council registration raise concerns.

The AIFF Medical Sub Committee has concluded that the appointment is Invalid and Against Statutory Guidelines.“

Contractual issues of Dr. Sandeep Kumar flagged by AIFF

The AIFF HR department has highlighted a few conditions of the agreement between AIFF and Dr. Sandeep Kumar which has never been allowed as per AIFF policies. Dr. Kumar was given flexible working hours which has never been allowed/approved at AIFF according to the HR.

Furthermore, the conditions for travel expenses mentioned, “Accommodation to cities other than New Delhi and Goa, India. Cost of the consultant will be borne by AIFF according to the prevailing policies.” The HR argued that this condition of travel exception was tailor-made and biased. 

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