Madras High Court to hear All-India Chess Federation elections case on Friday

Chennai: The Madras High Court on Friday will hear the case related All-India Chess Federation (AICF)’s elections. [caption id=“attachment_6839351” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image. Amruta Mokal/ChessBase India.[/caption] According to a senior AICF official, clarity on the election date would emerge on Friday as the High Court would hear a case in this connection. He said a majority of the electoral college has submitted an affidavit in his support. The AICF secretary Bharat Singh Chauhan said on Thursday, 43 affidavits have been filed in the Madras High Court saying the minutes of the federation’s general body meeting held on 28 December last year were valid. “Forty-three affidavits have been filed with the Madras High Court saying the minutes of the AICF general body meeting held in Bhopal on December 28 last year, circulated by me is valid,” Chauhan told PTI. He also alleged that the rival camp led by President PR Venketrama Raja would make attempts to delay the elections by filing more cases. “The rival faction will file more cases in a bid to delay the elections,” he said. Chauhan further said there would be clarity on the AICF elections date on Friday as the High Court is hearing the case. The secretary and the Federation president Venketrama Raja have been at loggerheads over various issues. Chauhan claimed the 43 affidavits were given by representatives of 19 state chess associations and six office-bearers of the federation. One of the decisions taken at the Bhopal general body meeting was to call a special general body meeting on 9 February in Ahmedabad to elect new office bearers for AICF. He said Ajay Patel, president of Gujarat State chess association would be the presidential candidate from his camp and he would likely contest for the secretary post. Chauhan said the aim was to work for chess and make the federation player-friendly. The Venketrama Raja camp had during a general body meeting held in December last called for a general body meeting to conduct the elections in Chennai on 10 February. The two factions have been making allegations against each other on various issues including the controversy.