Documents have surfaced casting doubt on former Sports Minister V Abdurahiman's claim that all efforts related to the Argentina football team's proposed visit to Kerala followed due procedure. An inquiry report by the Sports Department states that several correspondences purportedly exchanged between the minister and the Argentina Football Association (AFA) are missing from government files.

Sponsor bypassed government, signed agreement directly with AFA
On December 24, 2024, the Principal Secretary of the Sports Department issued an order stating that steps had been initiated to bring the Argentina football team to Kerala. The order appointed the Sports Kerala Foundation, which functions under the Sports Department, to oversee the project and granted the sponsor permission to organise two exhibition matches.

However, the sponsor had signed an agreement with the AFA four days earlier, which was not recorded in the government files.

The inquiry report by Special Secretary N Prashant pointed out that the agreement signed by the sponsor on December 20, 2024, was not available with the Sports Department. The report also found that Reporter Broadcasting Company had been directly selected as the sponsor without a tender for the project, which was estimated to cost ₹210 crore.

On January 7, 2025, the Sports Department amended its initial order and the revised order stated that Reporter Broadcasting Company, as the sponsor, had been entrusted with signing the agreement with the AFA.

Several correspondences missing from files
The Sports Department's inquiry report indicates that Abdurahiman communicated directly with AFA representatives via email, with some of these correspondences being added to the files only two years later. Most of the correspondence is currently unavailable in the files.

The report also states that the minister's private secretary bypassed senior officials and conveyed instructions to the Sports Department on matters related to the Argentina visit.

Although documents circulating externally indicate that AFA representatives had emailed Abdurahiman twice, threatening to cancel the contract over delayed payments by the sponsor, these communications were not found during the Special Secretary's inquiry.

Copies of minister's correspondence sent to private individual
Some correspondences purportedly exchanged by the then Sports Minister through his official email account with AFA Chief Commercial and Marketing Manager Leandro Petersen and International Relations Head Pablo J Diaz are also in circulation.

Many of the emails sent from the government's official account included Amira Aysha Beegam, an Assistant Professor in the English Department at Ponnani MES College, in copy. However, no other government official, including the Sports Department Secretary or Director, was copied in these emails. None of these messages were found in the official files either.

Amira was neither a member of the minister's personal staff nor associated with the Sports Department. Her email address was included even in messages in which the sponsor was not copied. The transfer of official documents to a private individual may also be investigated.

Amira has said that she became involved in the matter because she was acquainted with AFA representative Pablo Diaz. She also stated that she initially communicated with the AFA on behalf of both the sponsor and Abdurahiman, and drafted emails for both parties.

So, what about the ₹13.04 lakh?
The former minister's claim that the state government incurred no financial liability in connection with the Argentina team's proposed visit to Kerala is also facing scrutiny. As part of efforts to invite the Argentina team to Kerala, a delegation led by Abdurahiman visited Spain in 2024 and the minister himself had previously stated in the Assembly that the visit incurred an expenditure of ₹13,04,434.

‘Serious lapses in sponsor selection’
Prashant stated in his inquiry report that there were serious procedural lapses in selecting a private company as both the organiser and sponsor for bringing the Argentina team to Kerala. The company was selected solely on the basis of verbal instructions.

Following discussions between the former Sports Minister's office, the former Chief Secretary and the company, officials were given only verbal instructions to proceed with the project. The report further states that procedures such as inviting expressions of interest (EOIs), conducting a public tender, assessing sponsorship rates, verifying the company's financial capacity and ensuring the source of funds were all bypassed.

The inquiry report also highlights that no government order explaining the specific reasons for selecting the particular private company could be found in the government files.