Bajrang, Sakshi meet Thakur, want Singh loyalists out of WFI election

New Delhi, December 11

Olympics medalists Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik today met Sports Minister Anurag Thakur to seek assurances that Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh’s loyalists do not contest in the Wrestling Federation of India election.

Sakshi, Bajrang and Vinesh Phogat had led the protests against Singh in the sexual harassment allegations that also saw these wrestlers and their supporters getting detained by the Delhi Police on May 28 for trying to storm the new Parliament that was being inaugurated that day.

The wrestlers then met Home Minister Amit Shah, where they were told to trust the police investigation as the FIR was lodged. A few days later they called off the protest and pledged that their fight against Singh will continue in the courts.

Meanwhile, with returning officer Justice (retd) MM Kumar calling for the election on December 21 and the possibility of all of Singh loyalists returning to key posts in the WFI, Sakshi and Bajrang met Thakur to seek clarifications.

Both Bajrang and Sakshi, who spoke to the media, said they had fulfilled the Government’s request and called off the protest and it was time that their demands were met.

“I am sure whatever assurances that the government made us will be fulfilled. Whatever they had requested us to do, we did and now we are expecting the same,” Bajrang said.

Sakshi was more forthcoming. “We met him (Thakur) as the dates of the elections for the WFI have been announced. We stopped our protest after listening to the Government but now it is the time for them to fulfil their promise that no one related to Brij Bhushan Singh is part of the federation. Anurag Thakur said that the Government will keep its promises and we hope the same,” Sakshi said.

When asked whether the protests will resume after the election as there is a big chance that Sanjay Singh, who is the outgoing WFI chief’s loyalist, will win, Bajrang said they will decide on a later date.

“We will decide (whether to resume the protest) later but having said that we are very hopeful that the government will come true to its word,” he said.

The WFI election was to take place in August but was put on hold by the Punjab and Haryana High Court. However, the election was announced after the Supreme Court set aside the stay order on November 28.