PANAJI: The All India Football Federation (AIFF) was forced to postpone a Second Division I-League clash in Srinagar after security forces withdrew an earlier clearance and said it was "too risky" to play football.

Lonestar Kashmir FC were scheduled to host ARA FC at the TRC Football Ground in Srinagar on Sunday. The match coordination meeting and preparations for the clash were all going as planned. But a few hours before the clash, organisers were told by security forces that it was too much of a risk to go ahead with match.

The organisers didn't want to take a chance and immediately told the visiting team from Ahmedabad that the match has been postponed. "The teams were in Srinagar. They were at the hotel itself when the message was communicated to them. They didn't step out. The security situation became slightly problematic in the morning," said I-League CEO Sunando Dhar.

Since Saturday, Jammu and Kashmir police have started to crack down on separatist groups and are reported to have made 150 arrests. After the deadly Pulwama terror attack that left 40 CRPF personnel dead, the presence of paramilitary forces in the state has increased.

"There was a call for a shutdown in the valley on Sunday. The restrictions imposed on movement to maintain law and order made it difficult to move, forget about playing football. The situation is tense," said another official.

The AIFF's decision to postpone the clash due to security concerns may help Minerva Punjab's cause after the I-League champions refused to travel to Srinagar due to concerns over their safety last week. The AIFF did not postpone the clash and its league committee will decide on the outcome on Monday.

"Unlike the previous game (Real Kashmir vs Minerva Punjab in the I-League), the security agencies did not give us the go ahead today (for the Second Division clash)," said Dhar.

The committee will also decide if it's safe for East Bengal to travel to Srinagar later this week for a clash.

WHAT NEXT? Real Kashmir are scheduled to play East Bengal later this week

