Manoj Kumar Panigrahi (Orissa) edged out sixth seed Krishan Soni (Haryana) via Buchholz tie-break score to win the title in the 2nd Kalinga Fide Rated Open Chess Tournament here at OAS Association Bhawan today. After the end of ninth and final round, both Panigrahi and Soni tied for the top spot with 7.5 points each. However, the former was awarded the winner’s trophy and the top prize of Rs 15,000 as his Buchholz tie-break score (54) was higher than the latter (53.5).

But Soni protested against the decision of the chief arbiter and received the second prize of Rs 12,500 only after lodging a written complaint. He alleged that Panigrahi’s tie-break score was unjustifiably increased from 52 to 54 to help him win the title. The duo met each other in the final round and result turned out to be a draw. Anjan Mallick (West Bengal) finished third with seven points.

Besides the dispute about the title, a decision of host Kalinga Chess Academy making it mandatory for players to attend the closing function or lose the prize money, caused another upleasant situation. A victim of the decision not only expressed his resentment in public but also threatened to take the matter to the media.