The spat between the Badminton Association of India and its players is threatening to snowball into a major crisis, with former players and parents of some leading current players demanding the resignation of the association's "autocratic" president, V K Verma.
Former players and coaches Vimal Kumar, S M Arif, Vikram Singh, Leroy D'Sa and Ganguly Prasad have came out all guns blazing, in a statement issued on Wednesday, condemning Verma's recent remarks.
But what could be most damaging to the association and Verma is that Madhumita Bisht, the government observer, is also a signatory to the statement.
Verma had told the coaches and players to stop coaching from outside and said relatives of players should stay out of the whole issue.
"Verma, whose own contribution to Indian badminton is negligible, has lost his moral right to continue in office. His credentials, even as a follower of Indian badminton, are under question. He has hurt the sentiments of the badminton fraternity," the statement said.
Subhas Kanetkar, Kranti Gutta and Bobjee Kurien, fathers of Nikhil, Jwala and Shruti, also vented their ire through the statement.
"He (Verma) has neither badminton expertise, nor administrative ability or commitment to justify his position as president," they said.
Regarding Verma's comments against the coaches and parents, they said, "It is irresponsible and undermines the dedication and loyalty with which we have served Indian badminton. Verma cannot be expected to know of the sacrifice that the parents have made to make their children international-level players.
"We [coaches] have produced nearly every member of the Indian badminton team.
"Verma has become autocratic and is taking important decisions without consulting coaches who have produced India's national players. By questioning their ability, he has affected their morale, and should not continue as president of BAI," the hard-hitting statement added.
National champion Chetan Anand, Jwala and Shruti have taken the BAI head on after it refused to endorse them entries for two Super series tournaments.
The trio skipped the national camp and selection trials in protest and, as a consequence, were not selected to the team for the Sudirman Cup.
"The current system encourages an autocratic style of functioning and gives no scope for accountability. A nation's badminton policy cannot be allowed to run on the whims and prejudices of individuals," it said.
"We call for a transparent, logical and accountable system, and a reform of the BAI."
They accused the association and Verma of being "unprofessional" and trying to mislead the media, saying it was because of the federation that former doubles coach Hadi Sugianto of Indonesia left the country.
"As national coach, Vimal Kumar never received any support from Verma and BAI. He had sent several programmes and recommendations, all of which were ignored. This led to Hadi Sugianto, the former doubles coach, leaving the country.
"BAI even failed to provide the promised incentive to Sugianto. Is that professionalism?"
They said that Verma was never professional in his 10-year stint as president, and his responsibilities were confined to making guest appearances at tournaments and AGMs.
Verma also drew flak for his comment that even a star cricketer like Sachin Tendulkar practised with the team.
"...he should know that in an individual sport like badminton, a player can train on his own unless the camp is meant for a team championship," the angry coaches and parents added.
