Minerva Punjab owner Ranjit Bajaj on Wednesday said the I-League clubs will take legal recourse if FIFA does not intervene in the Indian football crisis, in response to the world governing body's advice to work closely with AIFF to find a solution.
Six I-League clubs, led by former I-League champions Minerva, had questioned the All India Football Federation's move to award the top league status to the privately-run Indian Super League (ISL), and they had written a letter to the FIFA in this regard.
The FIFA initially asked the AIFF to submit an update on the Indian football scenario, but in the latest latter sent to Bajaj, the world body urged the agitating I-League clubs to work closely with the national federation, while acknowledging that "complex issues" facing the sport require a "prudent and measured approach".
"The review performed in 2018 did indeed identify a number of complex issues which require a prudent and measured approach, encompassing the positions of all relevant stakeholders, in order to be appropriately addressed," the FIFA said in the letter.
"We strongly believe that the AIFF is best placed to do this ... it will be important that all clubs work closely with the AIFF as the cooperation of all stakeholders will be fundamental to ensuring that the best way forward for top-level football in India is found."
"We strongly believe that the AIFF is totally incompetent in handling the crisis which is being faced by the Indian football. By signing the illegal Master Rights Agreement with the IMG-Reliance (FSDL), the AIFF has become nothing but a puppet of its commercial partner who is ravaging Indian football for its own private profit."