In a major embarrassment to All India Football Federation (AIFF), the Delhi High Court has appointed Justice (retd) Rekha Palli as chairperson of its ethics and dispute resolution committee on Wednesday. Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav was hearing a petition filed by Churchill Brothers’ petition which had sought an “appointment of an independent, neutral and impartial committee”.The club had filed a series of complaints first against Inter Kashi’s inclusion in the I-League for benefitting from a lower financial thresholds and a conflict of interest complaint against its former president Prithijit Das, who was an AIFF official when the bid was made.Additionally, the Goan club also filed a petition against AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey as his wife Sohini Mitra Chaubey sits on the executive board of the Mohun Bagan football club.The club then raised objections to RK Pachanda’s continuance as the chairman of the ethics panel, the same judge asked Pachanda to recuse himself. Subsequently, the club objected to Sudharshan Aggarwal’s position on the committee as he had represented the AIFF president in a personal matter in court. He was forced to resign.The AIFF then appointed two new members, which was challenged and the High Court as the club called it unconstitutional because the report on eligibility check was not shared with the executive committee members before their appointments.Justice Kaurav agreed with the arguments made by Churchill Brothers senior advocate Ravi Prakash and Astu Khandelwal that the AIFF panel was compromised, conflict-ridden and a biased adjudicatory body.Senior advocate Akshay Makhija was also appointed as a member of the committee, while Justice (retd) Ashok Tripathi has been allowed to continue on the committee. Further, the court has directed that two additional members would be appointed after consultations among the three reconstituted members.The club said that the decision was a vindication of its stand. “For Churchill Brothers — a club that has carried the flag of Goan and Indian football with pride since its establishment in 1988 — this order is not merely a legal victory. It is a vindication of the principle that no institution, however powerful, can deny a legitimate party its right to a fair, independent, and impartial hearing,” the club said in a statement.