Former captain Bhaichung Bhutia on Tuesday demanded the resignation of All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Kalyan Chaubey, holding him responsible for the “current mess” in the administrative side of the game in the country, following the dismissal of Shaji Parabhakaran as secretary general.

Bhutia attended Tuesday’s executive committee meeting of the AIFF called here to discuss the dismissal of Prabhakaran on November 7. Prabhakaran was not initially invited for the meeting but joined it virtually.

“I told the executive committee members that Kalyan Chaubey and treasurer Kipa Ajay should also resign.

“Shaji Prabhakaran should not be made the only scapegoat.

“All three of them are equally responsible for taking decisions without the approval of executive committee,” Bhutia said.

“Indian football is in mess, there is politics in the sport, cutting out each other after little over one year of taking charge, it is not good.

“The national team was left in the lurch during the Hangzhou Asian Games as well as in the Asian Cup where there was inadequate training time for the team.”

Prabhakaran was removed on November 7 for “breach of trust” but a single bench of the Delhi High Court had on December 8 ordered an interim stay on his sacking.

In its latest order of January 19, the High Court pointed out that Prabhakaran was dismissed by the emergency committee of the AIFF whereas the federation’s constitution provides that only the executive committee has the power to do that.