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[caption id="attachment_43450" align="aligncenter" width="580"] Match officials for the crucial I-League tie between Shillong Lajong and Aizawl FC. Image Source: Facebook[/caption] Internet Desk: The appointment of the match officials for the North East derby on Sunday at Shillong has created huge controversy among the football fraternity. The match officials appointed for the derby are all from Bengal. Their appointment has created a debate as Mohun Bagan is also in the running for the championship. The four match officials selected to officiate the match are Pranjal Banerjee, Asit Kumar Sarkar (assistant referee), Suman Majumder (assistant referee) and Tanmoy Dhar (fourth referee). The Mariners will take on Chennai City FC at the Rabindra Sarobar Stadium at the same time. A lot will depend on the outcome of the match which takes place at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. Aizawl FC is just one match away from creating a history in Indian football. Khalid Jamil’s team will require just a draw to be crowned the I League champions. While if they lose against their arch rivals Shilong Lajong, and if Mohun Bagan win their last clash against Chennai, then the Kolkata outfit will emerge as the Champions. All India Football Federation (AIFF) officials are tight lipped on the issue. According to Gautam Kar, “The posting of the match officials are being done by the Referees Appointment Committee. The posting is made on the performance of each referee throughout the season. Since Pranjal is the best referee at the moment, he has been given the responsibility to officiate the all important match in Shillong.” According to reliable sources in AIFF, there is no such committee as Referees Appointment Committee. Neither the Executive Committee of the Federation is aware about the existence of any such committee. It is learnt that Gautam Kar. who is also the Head of Referee's Department in AIFF has made the appointment. Aizawl FC has already written to the AIFF, making it clear their reservations of having a match official from Bengal officiating in the match since a team from Bengal is also in the running for the championship. After initially threatening a boycott, AIFF managed to convince Aizawl FC officials that the referees will handle the game with absolute neutrality. Aizawl FC owner Robert Royte met with AIFF officials an hour and a half before the commencement of the match in Shillong and made their reservations very clear about the appointment of match officials. Mr. Royte said, "We are going to go ahead with the game but we will keep a strict vigil on the referees. We are not happy with the situation but we did not want to deny our fans who live and breathe football a chance to see their team win the title. We will keep fighting this injustice from the AIFF after the game."