Yogeshwar Dutt leads protest against exemption for six

The decision of the ad hoc committee of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) to exempt wrestlers who had sat on a protest from the full selection trials for Asian Games was slammed on Friday by coaches, parents of wrestlers and an Olympic medallist.

The ad hoc panel has written to the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) asking if the July 15 deadline for entries could be extended by a month only for wrestling. This was as per the request of the protesting six – Vinesh Phogat, Bajrang Punia, Sangeeta Phogat, Sakshi Malik, Satyawart Kadian and Jitender Kinha – who wanted time to prepare and face only the winners of the trials in a one-off bout for the Asian Games and World Championships selection.

The six have been demanding the arrest of former federation president Brij Bhusan Sharan Singh for sexual harassment of women wrestlers.

While lack of time can be an issue for the Asian Games’ trials, there should be no problem for the world championships in Belgrade from September 10,which is also a qualifier for the Paris Olympics. The last date for sending entries is August 16.

The panel’s decision was criticised by London Olympics bronze medallist Yogeshwar Dutt, who is part of the IOA executive council. “I don't understand why only six wrestlers have been given the exemption. It is absolutely wrong and unfair. It is unprecedented and never happened in Indian wrestling. I don't understand what the criteria the ad-hoc panel has followed for the trials,” Dutt said in a video posted on Twitter.

Dutt, who was part of the Union sports ministry's oversight committee running WFI till April, said an exception should not have been made for being in a sit-in protest.

"If you are exempting any wrestler, there should be a criteria. If you want to give exemption, there is also Tokyo Olympics medallist Ravi Dahiya, CWG medallist Deepak Punia, Worlds medallist Anshu Malik, Sonam Malik and so many top wrestlers. Was the protest against sexual harassment charges or for seeking exemption in trials? The IOA panel has not followed any rules and criteria before taking such a decision," he said.

He also called on other wrestlers, who will be taking part in the trials, to write to sports minister Anurag Thakur.

“The wrestlers must raise their voice. You are working hard for these trials, so write letters to the Prime Minister, the Home Minister, Sports Minister Anurag Thakur and IOA and let them know about the matter. Even the previous WFI had never done this. Earlier, there are occasions when teams were sent without trials, but it was ensured that only the best team is picked," said Dutt.

In a separate video, Dutt claimed that the protestors had told him that if he joined the agitation, they would consider forwarding his name for WFI president.

Coaches of wrestlers preparing for the selection trials too have protested. Under-20 world championships medallist Sujeet Kalkal will compete in 65kg – which is also Bajrang Punia’s category. His father and coach Dayanand Kalkal said rules should be uniform.

"Other wrestlers will fight four-five bouts and these wrestlers will get only one final bout. How is it fair? Give them the time to prepare, but you need to hold the trial together and put them through the same," he said.

A similar suggestion was made by Vikas Bhardwaj who coaches Antim Panghal, the under-20 world champion and silver medallist at the senior Asian Championships this year. Panghal gave a tough fight to Vinesh Phogat (53kg) in a selection trial last year.

“Antim has been preparing for these trials for the last two months. She did not participate in ranking series only for the Asian Games trials. And there is no clarity on selection trials. Why should there be different rules?.. There is already a delay. It is hampering her preparation," he said.

Dutt's criticism drew a sharp response from Vinesh Phogat who said that not only had he stopped wrestlers from joining the protest, but, as a member of the oversight panel, he also made fun of women wrestlers during the hearing.

“He was a part of both the committees made for women wrestlers. When women wrestlers were narrating their ordeals in front of the committee, he would laugh. When two female wrestlers came out to drink water, he came out and told them that nothing should happen to Brijbhushan. ‘Go and do your practice’," Phogat said in a long tweet against Dutt.

In another development, disaffiliated state units of Maharashtra and Haryana have pointed out that WFI flouted its constitution while giving affiliation to new units in those states. They claimed the affiliations had happened without the "recognition of the respective State Olympic Association" and neither fulfilled the criteria of "50% affiliated district unit." Five state associations were called by returning officer, retired chief justice Mahesh Mittal Kumar, to sort out disputes even as elections were rescheduled to July 11.

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