New Delhi: Did Ric Charlesworth care for his contract when he went public with his grievance that he signed it under duress? According to a top Sports Authority of India (SAI) official, the Aussie legend breached his pact with the government agency on more than one occasion.

The first of the violations occurred when he went to the media with his woes and opinions about the state of Indian hockey. “Articles 20 and 21 of his contract say that he will not publicly air his personal views on the selection or performance of the players, coaches/technical support staff or affairs of the IHF/IWHF/SAI or disclose the contents of his reports/recommendations to the public or media without specific authorization from the presidents of IHF or IWHF or DG, SAI,” the official said.

Charlesworth’s tirade against SAI, leaked to the media after he left the country last week, is seen as one example of this infraction. “In such a scenario, according to Article 22, SAI has the powers to terminate the contract with immediate effect,” the official pointed out, quoting from the contract.

While SAI had made it clear to him in writing that they would determine the nature of his work, tasks and responsibilities, Charlesworth had openly expressed unhappiness over one of his major functions — that of conducting workshops and training courses for Indian coaches.

“Article 17 says that SAI shall be entitled to utilize the services of Charlesworth for conducting practical training courses for Indian coaches. During his first assignment in Bangalore, Charlesworth said he wasn’t interested in conducting the workshop. He was only keen on contributing his bit.

“In recent times, he has also said that he wouldn’t want to prop up an incompetent coach and that he does not want to continue in his role as an advisor. Aren’t these instances of infringement?”

The Australian’s tendency to leave for his personal assignments abroad too has irked the central body. “Charlesworth commentated for a TV channel during the recent Champions Trophy in Holland when actually, he was there with the Indian women’s team for a four-nation tournament.”