Brij Bhushan to athletes: Reactions to Centre suspending WFI body
In an unexpected move, the Union Sports and Youth Affairs Ministry suspended the newly elected governing body of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) led by Sanjay Singh on Sunday. While several Indian wrestlers welcomed the decision, some opined that the central government must have intervened much earlier. They said it should have taken strict action against the country's wrestling body for violating the norms.
Why does this story matter?
The Centre's move came after the Singh-led WFI announced on Thursday that the under-20 (U-20) and under-15 (U-15) national wrestling competitions would be held in Uttar Pradesh's Gonda before the end of 2023. However, the Sports Ministry termed the move "hasty" as it was taken without informing the Executive Committee, violating the WFI constitution. Moreover, the election of Singh—a close aide of ex-WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, accused of sexual harassment of female wrestlers—to the WFI also faced opposition.
Ray of hope: Geeta Phogat on WFI body suspension
Commonwealth Games gold medalist Geeta Phogat reacted to the development on X, saying she is confident that wrestlers will finally get justice. "Sports Ministry has suspended the Wrestling Federation of India. Even though it is late, there is a ray of hope that wrestlers will get justice," she added. To recall, several top wrestlers, including Olympic medalists Bajrang Punia and Sakshee Malikkh, held a five-month-long protest in 2023 against Brij Bhushan. They also opposed Singh's appointment as the WFI chief.
Recalling Punia, Malikkh's protests after WFI elections
In protest against the WFI's election results last week as Singh won, top wrestler Malikkh announced she was quitting the sport. During a media address, Commonwealth Games and Asian Games gold medalist Vinesh Phogat also claimed that women wrestlers would continue to face harassment under this new WFI regime. On Friday, grappler Punia revealed he wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and was returning his Padma Shri award as a sign of protest.
How Vijender Singh reacted to Centre's latest move
Indian professional boxer and now Congress leader Vijender Singh also expressed his thoughts on the Centre's move on Sunday. He said the Centre should have brought down the hammer on the newly formed WFI governing body much earlier. "They made the woman to quit wrestling, the man to return the Padma Shri, and now they have suspended the wrestling federation. Action should have been taken earlier," the Olympic medalist wrote in a tweet.
Elections happened on SC's direction: Brij Bhushan on WFI suspension
On the ministry's move, Brij Bhushan distanced himself from the issue and told PTI the WFI elections happened at the Supreme Court's directions. "Singh is not my relative. To resume the sports activities and not waste a year of young wrestlers, it was decided to conduct the games in Nandini Nagar (Gonda)," he claimed. "Now, I do not have anything to do with wrestling and have to look into the Lok Sabha elections," said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP.
