THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The ban imposed by the Trivandrum Tennis Club on a young player is snowballing into a row with the parents of the player petitioning the government against the club. The Kerala Sports Council is also looking into the matter. Jithin George, 20, who won state championships four times and won many national -level events, was banned from playing on TTC courts by the club honorary secretary Biju B Soman on March 31. He was playing in the TTC since the age of seven.
While Jithin alleged that he was banned on charges of delaying fee payment by a day, the secretary maintains that the student defaulted on the fees for several months and even misbehaved with him when he was asked to pay the fees. The Kerala Sports Council is looking into the issue after Jithin’s father George Varghese submitted a petition. He has also petitioned the Chief Minister against the Club. Sports council vice-president Mercy Kuttan said that though she spoke to the secretary on the matter, he seemed indifferent.
“It is unjust that a young player is banned from playing just because he delayed fee payment by a day. The council will discuss the matter and take appropriate measures,” she told DC. Denying the allegations, Mr. Soman said that the student was banned for misbehaving. “He had fee dues for several months from last July and that was the reason for banning him. He misbehaved with me once when I asked him to clear the dues. Even after I asked him to use the court only after paying the monthly fee of Rs. 500, he entered the court. Such disobedience cannot be tolerated. I have all the evidence of the reasons for which Jithin was banned,” said the secretary.
Meanwhile, there are also allegations that the ban on Jithin was due to infighting among club members. Jithin used to play as a guest member under the care of another member in the club. “The secretary spoke to me in a rude manner and even asked about my achievements. Hence I told him about the titles I had won,” said Jithin. Jithin, who is now studying at TKM Engineering college in Kollam, said that he used to play only on one or two days in a month at TTC. “During some months, I did not play at TTC even for a day,” he said.
