New Delhi, March 31 (NationPress) Kalyan Chaubey, President of the All India Football Federation (AIFF), has responded to allegations of harassment and "heckling" made by Valanka Alemao, a female Executive Committee member, asserting, "I wish to understand the definition of 'heckle'.

Alemao, who serves on the FIFA Women’s Development Committee, reached out to FIFA Ethics Committee chair Martin Ngoga and FIFA Women’s Football Committee chair Laura Georges, requesting an investigation and action in accordance with FIFA Statutes.

She mentioned, "I am also considering addressing this issue in other significant forums to combat the harassment and humiliation directed at a woman member. I urge you to take my complaint seriously and take appropriate actions," in a letter dated March 30, which IANS has obtained.

In an exclusive conversation with IANS, Chaubey firmly denied the allegations, stating, "Someone ought to clarify the term 'heckle'. What does that even mean? There were 13 EC members present in that boardroom. So, how do we define heckling versus 'raising one's voice'? That’s the question I seek an answer to.

"This seems to be an attempt at blackmail against our primary mission. The board comprised respected, dignified members, including the sports minister of Mizoram and the chair of the parallel development committee. Why would anyone heckle anyone else?"

Alemao had initially sent a letter to the AIFF on March 29, claiming that Chaubey, Vice President N.A. Haris, and Deputy Secretary General Satyanarayan subjected her to "unwarranted and disrespectful" comments and raised their voices beyond an "acceptable decibel" with the aim to "intimidate" her.

"In her letter addressed to the president, vice president, deputy secretary, and committee member, what does that imply? Is there heckling mentioned in that statement? She noted that the deputy secretary's voice exceeded a certain decibel level. Is there a specific decibel threshold defined for acceptable speech?" Chaubey questioned.

He maintained a strong position that no harassment, gender discrimination, or "different behavior" occurred during the meeting. "There are no allegations against me. I don’t need to justify myself or provide any clarifications. The context of the situation has been outlined. Just remember, there was no heckling, no harassment, no differentiation between genders, and no unusual behavior," Chaubey stated.

The uproar originated from an executive committee meeting intended to deliberate on the adoption of the National Sports Governance Act and a major 20-year commercial bid for the federation.

"This was a boardroom. In a boardroom, individuals represent themselves equally. The executive meeting was convened to address two agenda items: the adoption of the National Sports Governance Act by member associations, which are state associations.

"The second point was the AIFF's acquisition of a 20-year commercial bid for the federation. Nothing more has been discussed or deliberated. Logically, participants can either agree or disagree with the rationale presented," he concluded.