Agencies
New Delhi
Harmanjot Singh Khabra, the robust mifielder of Chennaiyin FC, has been suspended for four matches by the disciplinary committee of the All India Football Federation (AIFF) for breach of the governing body's disciplinary code (Article 50) of misconduct towards match officials during the Blues' match against NorthEast United on October 20, 2015, in Guwahati.
Khabra acted out of dissent and mouthed at the referee for perceived injustice, when the first of the two penalties was given against the Abhishek Bachchan co-owned team. The referee booked the Punjab-born midfielder before deciding to issue a direct red card with the East Bengal captain not relenting in his criticism. Besides the suspension, the 26 year-old has been fined INR 3,00,000.
The referee dished out ten yellow cards and a red card in the ill-tempered game that saw Marco Materazzi and Cesar Farias nearly come to blows before Chennaiyin’s skipper on the night, Bernard Mendy, too got involved in a mire against the NorthEast coach, causing the match to be interrupted for about five minutes.
It wasn't just the player though that the AIFF aimed their cannons at. Consequences of the ill-tempered affair were felt by both clubs as well with Chennaiyin and NorthEast United being fined Rs.50,000 for misconduct towards the opponent (ISL Article 22.2) and the Chennai-based side were fined an additional INR.1,00,000 for team misconduct (Article 53), as the referee booked more than five players from their side.
