VIENNA/KATHMANDU: The ethics committee at world soccer body FIFA has banned two officials from Nepal and Laos for taking cash during elections, it said on Monday.

Ganesh Thapa, president of the All Nepal Football Association, was banned for 10 years and fined 20,000 Swiss francs ($19,870), while Viphet Sihachakr, president of the Laotian Football Federation, got a two-year ban and a 40,000 franc fine.

FIFA said Thapa, in the context of the 2009 and 2011 elections for the FIFA Executive Committee at the Asian Football Confederation congress, "committed various acts of misconduct over several years, including the solicitation and acceptance of cash payments from another football official, for both personal and family gain."

"Specifically, he was found guilty of infringing article 13 (General rules of conduct), article 15 (Loyalty), article 18 (Duty of disclosure, cooperation and reporting), article 19 (Conflicts of interest), article 20 (Offering and accepting gifts and other benefits) and article 21 (Bribery and corruption) of the FIFA Code of Ethics (FCE)."

Likewise, Sihachakr, in the context of the 2011 elections, solicited and accepted a payment from another football official, it said.

The bans come into force immediately, the world football body said.

The decisions were made based on investigations carried out by the investigatory chamber of the Ethics Committee under the chairmanship of Dr Cornel Borbély.

I'm disappointed, says Thapa

Meanwhile, Thapa said the FIFA decision disappointed him.

"I do not believe that justice has been served," he said in a media release, "I shall be asking for their full reasons behind the decision."

"When I have these, I intend to follow the necessary steps before FIFA and if necessary the Court of Arbitration (CAS) to establish my innocence."