Basketball players’ death: Deepender raises three demands before state govt

Holding the state government responsible for the tragic deaths of two minor basketball players — Hardik of Lakhan Majra (Rohtak) and Aman of Bahadurgarh (Jhajjar) — Rohtak MP Deepender Hooda on Sunday placed three key demands before the state government for the bereaved families.

“To ensure justice, the government must provide a job to one family member of each victim along with financial assistance of Rs 1 crore, take strict action against those officials failing to utilise the Rs 18.5 lakh from my MPLADS fund for stadium maintenance, and admit its lapse by immediately releasing budget for sports infrastructure,” Deepender said, while addressing the media here on Sunday.

He also demanded construction of an indoor stadium at Lakhan Majra named after national player Hardik Rathee to inspire budding athletes.

Announcing that he would move an adjournment motion in the winter session of the Lok Sabha, the MP said, “The BJP government in Haryana is responsible for these deaths. It should apologise for failing to repair existing stadiums. Even Rs 18.5 lakh I allocated for repairs of the stadium remained stuck in files. No one bothered to check that the basketball poles had rusted.”

Deepender further claimed that failure to utilise MPLADS funds amounted to a breach of privilege. “The injustice in Lakhan Majra will echo in Parliament. Hardik was a national player. This is a national issue and the Union Government must take cognisance,” he said.

He asked the state government to disclose how many of the 481 sports stadiums built during the Congress-led Hooda government were given maintenance funds. “Of these, 120 stadiums were built in the Rohtak Lok Sabha constituency. Two SAI centres were established. I myself built the Lakhan Majra sports stadium, from where many players rose to the national level. The BJP government has not allotted even a single rupee for its maintenance in 11 years,” he claimed.

Deepender added that the government’s response after the incident was rejected by the victims’ families. “We, too, reject it. Offering merely Rs 5 lakh as relief shows the government’s intent,” he said.

Congress MLAs — Bharat Bhushan Batra and Shakuntla Khattak — and former minister Subhash Batra were also present on the occasion.