‘Should have done this earlier’, Top Athletes after Govt suspends newly-elected Wrestling Federation of India
Top athletes welcome Sports Ministry's move to suspend newly-elected management of Wrestling Federation of India, but say action came late by government.
Top athletes have welcomed the Sports Ministry's move to suspend the newly-elected management of the Wrestling Federation of India after Sanjay Singh announced U-15 and U-20 nationals to take place in Nandini Nagar, Gonda (UP) before the end of this year.
However, they said the action came late by the government. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Olympian and wrestler Geeta Phogat wrote, “Sports Ministry suspends Indian Wrestling Association. Even though it is late, a ray of hope has definitely arisen that the wrestlers will get justice!!!!”
Vijendra Singh, the first Indian boxer to win an Olympic medal who has been supporting the wrestlers' fight against Brij Bhushan, also stated that the Central government should have done it much earlier.
“Brother got the girl to quit wrestling, took away the boy's Padma Shri, now he said that the federation has been canceled 🙄 he should have done this earlier,” he wrote on the microblogging site.
The WFI elections were held on December 21 with former president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh's loyalist, Sanjay Singh, and his panel winning the polls by big margins.
Singh, the UP Wrestling Association vice-president hailing from Varanasi, secured 40 votes as against seven of his rival and 2010 Commonwealth Games gold medallist Anita Sheoran.
Top wrestlers Virender Singh and Bajrang Punia have stated their desire to return the Padma Shri in opposition to Brij Bhushan's alleged ostentatious display of power and influence. Weighing in opposition to the election of the Brij Bhushan loyalist, wrestler Sakshee Mallikh declared her retirement from competition.
Three days ago, gold medallist Vinesh Phogat from the Commonwealth and Asian Games broke down in tears during a media interview, accusing Sanjay Singh of leading the WFI to perpetuate harassment towards women wrestlers.
In January this year, three wrestlers organized a massive demonstration against Brij Bhushan at Delhi's Jantar Mantar.
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Business NewsNewsIndia‘Should have done this earlier’, Top Athletes after Govt suspends newly-elected Wrestling Federation of India
First Published:24 Dec 2023, 02:09 PM IST
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