The Union sports ministry on Sunday suspended the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) for blatant disregard for the established legal and procedural norms. The ministry noted that the newly-elected body appeared to be in complete control of former office-bearers. As a result of the suspension, the ministry has requested the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) to constitute an ad-hoc committee to manage and control the affairs of the wrestling federation’s governing body.
The elections of the WFI took place on December 21 with Sanjay Singh and his panel, loyalists of former president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, winning the polls by large margins. However, their appointment was opposed by prominent wrestlers Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik, and Bajrang Punia. Malik even announced her retirement to protest against the appointment, while Punia returned his Padma Shri award.
The sports ministry further stated that the newly-elected body made a hasty announcement to organise the U-15 and U-20 nationals without following due procedure and without giving sufficient notice to the wrestlers for preparations. The trials were scheduled to be held in Gonda, the hometown of Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.
The ministry, in its suspension order, highlighted that the business of the federation was being run from premises controlled by former office-bearers, where allegations of sexual harassment of players have been made and the matter is currently under court review.
In response to the suspension, Brij Bhushan Singh, the former president of the WFI, met with BJP president JP Nadda and announced his retirement from wrestling. Singh stated that a new governing body for the WFI was elected on the government’s order under the supervision of the Supreme Court in a democratic manner. Regarding the allegations against him, Singh dismissed them as baseless and stated that he has been facing continuous politics for the past 11 months.
(Catch all the Business News, Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on The Economic Times.)
Download The Economic Times News App to get Daily Market Updates & Live Business News.
Subscribe to The Economic Times Prime and read the ET ePaper online.
