Row over Parveen’s PWL bout against Punjab’s Jitender

Vinayak Padmadeo

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January 16

Disputes and controversies seem to be following Parveen Rana everywhere. Yet again one of his bouts, this time during the Pro-Wrestling League, has come under the spotlight for contentious refereeing decision.

Fighting for Veer Marathas, Parveen lost the final match to Jitender (4-7) of Punjab Royals, which decided the tie (4-3) in favour of the defending champions on Sunday. The bout was a disputed one as both Parveen and the coaching staff of Marathas challenged the decision and requested the chairman of the referee panel to review the last moments of the match. However, the bout was not reviewed.

On Tuesday, the protest reached the office of Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. Along with the video evidence, the senior management of Veer Marathas, including co-owners Ravi Jain, Sameer Jain, Vishwajeet Saxena and Gaurav Wankhede registered their complaint in the hope of getting the result overturned.

Singh gave them a patient hearing and told them that the result could be overturned as per the rules and the only thing they could possibly do was register a complaint against the referee.

“Though he saw reason behind our protest, he told us that the result will not change. But he gave us assurance that things like this will not be repeated,” Ravi Jain told The Tribune.

“We could have had our first win and it is clear in the video evidence that Parveen’s knees weren’t touching the mat. It was wrong to award points to Punjab,” Wankhede said.

‘Disputed call’

On Sunday, Veer Marathas lost the tie against defending champions Punjab Royals 3-4. Parveen was leading against his Railways’ compatriot Jitender 4-0 when the tie was tied at 3-3. Seemingly in control, Rana then conceded two points after South Korean referee Shinhye Jeung penalised him for passivity. Another two points later, Parveen was still looking to earn the vital points for Marathas as he had won his four points in a clutch. But just before the final whistle, Jitender pinned him down and earned three points to clinch the tie for Punjab.

Marathas coach Mahavir Singh challenged the verdict, saying Jitender didn’t complete the move in the stipulated time but was overruled by the chairman of referee panel.