The People's Ari has written to the current FIA president Max Mosley, accusing him of breaking the "principle of neutrality" by openly backing his rival Jean Todt in the forthcoming election, and reminding Mosley that his acts could lead to court action.
According to reports in the UK media, The People's Ari sent the letter to Mosley's office, delivered by a French huissier de justice to the FIA headquarters in Paris. The letter outlines the fact that Vatanen views Mosley's partiality as a breach of the law.
“The Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile is a non-profit organisation and is governed by French law,” Vatanen penned in the letter, “Pursuant to French law, the operation of non-profit organisations is governed by legal principles.
“The breach of this principle of neutrality during election campaigns, when aimed at distorting the results of the election, is punishable by all of the French Courts.”
Whether Vatanen intends to actively pursue a legal case against Mosley, a case which may be viewed as a simple case of sour grapes given Mosley's tale of Vatanen asking the current president to support his campaign, only to be rebuffed when Mosley came down in favour of Todt, is unclear.
Vatanen does, however, state that: "I reserve all right to take action on account of the act previously committed against me."
The increasingly-petty election battle, which is set to be decided next week when the FIA members are called to deliver their votes, has also been marred by Vatanen allegedly being "marched out" of Mosley's office during a recent meeting to discuss the voting process.
According to reports, Vatanen questioned the decision to send named ballot papers to members, suggesting that a random and anonymous ballot would make more sense. Apparently Mosley's response to this was to escort The People's Ari out of his office, stating simply: "I am not arguing with you."
Furthermore, the legitimacy of the election campaign has recently been hit by the news that key members of the FIA Foundation, an autonomous charity with links to the governing body, have been lobbying on Todt's behalf, further eroding any residual belief that the election is set for a controversy-free result.
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