(REUTERS) - The turmoil in Scottish football continued on Sunday (April 12) as Hearts joined Rangers in criticising the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL)'s handling of Friday's vote over ending the season if it cannot be completed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Scotland's 42 professional clubs voted digitally on the SPFL's proposal to end the season in all four divisions if the remaining games cannot be played.
However, no outcome was declared on Friday as Dundee did not cast their vote before the deadline.
The Championship club's vote will also determine whether the Premiership standings are decided on a points-per-game basis if the league's board decides the remaining games cannot be played.
That would see Celtic - who hold a 13-point lead over Rangers - crowned champions while Hearts would be relegated.
Hearts chair Anne Budge called the botched vote "a major embarrassment for Scottish football" in a statement on the club's website on Sunday and said the SPFL was trying to "unduly influence the members' decision-making process".
Budge also said her club would propose a 'Temporary Adjustment to the Leagues' - effectively an expanded Premiership for next season - to compensate for the financial losses due to the campaign being prematurely terminated.
Hearts stand to lose up to £3 million (S$5.30 million) in lost income if the resolution is accepted and the season terminated, she added.
The SPFL, meanwhile, defended itself from a stinging attack by Rangers, who had raised "serious concerns" with the voting process and called for the suspension of SPFL chief Neil Doncaster on Saturday.
"I am entirely satisfied, based on all the information at my disposal, that the SPFL and its executives and legal advisers have acted wholly properly at every stage in this process," SPFL chairman Murdoch MacLennan said in a letter addressed to all 42 clubs which was published by British media on Sunday.
He denied the SPFL board would distribute end of season fee payments to clubs before final positions had been finalised.
MacLennan also referred to allegations made by Rangers' interim chairman Douglas Park about the SPFL's corporate governance. MacLennan said he had asked Park to present evidence for his claims but had not yet received a response.
