The reason for the dispute is the loss suffered by Delhi Blues in the crucial semi-final game of the Chief Minister's Football tournament at the Ambedkar Stadium. The absence of Mohammed Mobin, Mohammed Khalid, Amarjeet Sahni and Hitender Rawat, all of whom belong to Hindustan, was felt as the team went down 0-1 to Mahindras.

Delhi Soccer Association secretary Syed Nasir Ali, who is also the tournament organising secretary, was furious over the defeat.

``The players were asked to report for the Delhi team, but they preferred the club to the state,'' said a dejected Nasir Ali.

Hindustan secretary D.K. Bose, however, defended the club's action by saying, ``Durand is a better-rated tournament and we did not want to take any chance (by not playing the four). Anyway, the qualifier ended before the start of the semi-finals at Ambedkar Stadium and I had sent all but Sahni in time to join the state team. In fact, Sahni could not play even in the qualifier because he was unwell''.

But Ali reacted saying,``How can you field an already tired player, that too, in a crucial match like the semi-finals?'' Ali also claimed that he had no news about the players coming for the match and did not see any of them on the ground.

Bose said that he had made a request to the CM's tourney organisers to adjust the dates to avoid a clash with Durand qualifiers. But Ali believes that with Hindustan players, Delhi Blues had a better chance of making it to the final. In fact, it was the club's Hitender Rawat who netted the winner in the match against the formidable Punjab Police.

Incidentally, with the CM's tournament being held at Ambedkar Stadium, the Durand committee, in a rare departure, had to shift their qualifying matches to the Thyagaraj Nagar Sports Complex. The Durand qualifiers began today.