SINGAPORE — Freelance writer Suresh Nair has refused to apologise to the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) after he alleged that it leaked news of Mr Krishna Ramachandra’s resignation as chairman of Tampines Rovers.

Writing for Singapore news website The Independent and Malaysian site Sports247my, Mr Nair cited several unnamed S.League club officials as his sources before being served a cease-and-desist letter by the FAS on Saturday.

He was given a deadline of noon yesterday to publish an “unreserved apology” in a letter signed by FAS general secretary Winston Lee on behalf of its executive committee.

It also demanded that he confirm in writing whether the “unnamed sources” he quoted were “true… or simply fictitious”, and warned of the possibility of taking “further action” if Mr Nair did not agree to the demands.

However Mr Nair has told TODAY that he responded to the FAS to stand by the claims in his articles and said he “absolutely” did not accede to the national sports association’s requests.

Mr Nair, 62, said in an email: “I responded to the FAS at 1.25am Tuesday with an appropriate reply… I reiterated to them that I read of the contents of the letter in TODAY newspaper before I received the formal letter from the FAS Exco (executive committee).

“The contents of my latest FAS letter should be made available by the FAS as they have this eccentric habit of releasing privy stuff to the media.”

The saga began last Wednesday when Mr Ramachandra publicly declared plans to leave his role as Stags chairman in the coming weeks, citing a busy work schedule.

The following day, Mr Nair’s article was published on the two websites and he shared them on his Facebook page.

Later that day, FAS vice-president Edwin Tong told a press conference that the council will work with Mr Ramachandra to ensure the Stags are in good shape before he steps down, while firmly refuting claims that information about his departure was leaked by the council.

After the letter of demand was issued, FAS president Lim said in a media statement that Mr Nair’s claims were “malicious”.

The lawyer and deputy chairman of Fifa’s disciplinary committee added that Mr Nair “makes a very serious allegation that members of the FAS Council leaked the resignation letter of Mr Krishna Ramachandra … His claim is false and baseless and is written to intentionally smear the reputation of the FAS and its leadership.”

The Independent had taken down the article yesterday although it still showed on Sports247my.

Mr Nair also told TODAY that he is “prepared, without prejudice and without admission to liability, to clear the air with a face-to-face meeting” with the FAS to “explore an amicable resolution and avoid a further escalation of the matter”.

TODAY understands that the FAS is speaking to its lawyers.

An FAS spokesman told TODAY: “We have noted Mr Nair’s response and will make a comment after due consideration.”