All Nepal Football Association (Anfa) election set for May 5 hit yet another snag on Wednesday after a new case was filed at the Kathmandu District Court.

Candidates and district officials close to the presidential candidate Mani Kunwar-led faction filed a writ petition at the court demanding the election be put on hold. Tika Singh Khatri, an official of the case registration department at the KDC, said various district football association (FA) presidents and representatives of some clubs have filed writ petitions claiming that Anfa election was illegal, demanding an interim stay order. “The hearing of the case will take place tomorrow (Thursday),” said Khatri.

Kathmandu FA president Birat Jung Shahi, Kailali president Ganesh Chand, Bara’s Mohammad Sammiullah, Kailali’s Mohit Shah among others have filed the petitions at the court. Shahi is the treasurer and Chand a member of the current Anfa central executive committee. Both are also running for the vice president’s post from Kunwar-led panel. 

Earlier on Tuesday, the senior vice president Kunwar-led faction said the impending Anfa election was against the statute. The Anfa election committee on April 25 had rescheduled the poll for May 5 on a 10-day notice following a Patan High Court decision that lifted an interim order to put the election on hold.

The election was earlier scheduled for March 28 but was put on hold after representatives from Makwanpur and Bhaktapur FAs filed writ petition claiming they were deprived of their rights to participate in the election.

“We want the election to be held as per the statute and norms of Anfa so that football will be free from dispute in future,” Kunwar had said.

“As per the statue, Anfa must furnish a 60-day notice to hold the general assembly but the letter for May 5 election is dispatched on April 25,” he said.

“Only the executive committee of Anfa holds the right to fix the date and venue of election. The previous election date (March 28) was already put on hold by the Court. So we are against going to election on May 5,” Kunwar had said.

Former vice president Karma Tsering Sherpa leads the other faction and have strongly objected to any more postponement. Anfa election was originally set for January 25 but has since been postponed four times on various pretext in the last four months, the last of which was put off indefinitely on March 22 due to the court stay order.

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) however has urged Anfa not to interfere in the Anfa Election Committee regarding the Anfa Electoral Congress. The letter signed by AFC general secretary Dato Windsor on April 11 and addressed to Anfa general secretary Dhirendra Pradhan said: “We would like to remind you that the Anfa Electoral Committee shall be sole charge of all electoral matters and decision making without any external interference.”