New Delhi: : Former players said they felt vindicated as their allegations of corruption in the Indian Hockey Federation have been proven with the dramatic sting operation showing K Jothikumaran accepting bribe for selection of a player.

Aslam Sher Khan said the whole IHF had been caught red-handed through the yesterday’s Jothikumaran-episode. “For years, we have been speaking against (IHF president KPS) Gill and Jothikumaran. But Gill had described the former players as ‘mourners’. With the episode involving Jothikumaran, the whole IHF has been caught red-handed,” Khan said. Former coach Mir Ranjan Negi said most of the ex-hockey players had an inkling about such malpractices. “We had to lose players like Len Aiyappa, Gagan Ajit Singh and Deepak Thakur because of the IHF administration,” he alleged.