On 24 December, the Indian Sports Ministry announced the suspension of the newly formed Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) under the leadership of new president Sanjay Singh till further orders.
The appointment of Sanjay Singh, a close aide of former WFI chief and BJP Member of Parliament Brij Bhushan, was protested by prominent wrestlers like Sakshi Malik, Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia, who have accused Bhushan of sexually exploiting women wrestlers during his tenure.
The Suspension
According to the Ministry, Singh was behaving with “blatant disregard for the established legal and procedural norms.”
It said that the “newly elected body appears to be in complete control of former office-bearers.”
Suspending the new committee, the Ministry also wrote a letter to the Indian Olympic Association asking it to establish an ad-hoc committee to oversee the affairs of the WFI.
The suspension was announced after the new WFI announced the hosting of Under-15 and Under-20 nationals before the year’s end in Nandini Nagar, Gonda, Uttar Pradesh.
Notably, Gonda is Bhushan’s constituency, and many women wrestlers have earlier complained of sexual harassment during the camps there.
Govt suspends Wrestling federation: New body in complete control of former office-bearers https://t.co/iRPXbH0lAE pic.twitter.com/lel91nFcrn
— The Indian Express (@IndianExpress) December 24, 2023
The government termed the announcement a “hasty” decision and highlighted that the prospective participants were not notified on time.
The decision has been welcomed by Sakshi Malik, who announced her retirement after Singh’s appointment.
Meanwhile, Singh has said that the WFI will explore legal options and urge the government to revoke the suspension.
It is to be noted that the WFI has only been suspended till further orders and has not been terminated. The ministry said that the body just needs to follow the due process and the rules.
The Elections
Following delayed elections to the WFI, the Sanjay Singh-led panel took over the body after an election on 21 December.
Singh won 40 out of 47 votes in the polls, with Commonwealth Gold Medalist Anita Shoeran getting only seven votes while being the only woman candidate in the race for the top post.
Shoeran’s defeat was seen as the Sports Ministry’s betrayal of the women wrestlers who were assured by Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur after protests last year that “a woman administrator would be elected to the top post.”
Following the results, Olympian Malik held a press conference and announced her retirement.
Olympic bronze-medallist Punia also returned his Padma Shri award in protests.
Additionally, Commonwealth and Asian Games Gold medallist Phogat questioned the decision and said that female wrestlers will continue to face harassment.
Accusations Against Brij Bhushan, Wrestlers Protest
Indian wrestlers began a sit-in protest on 18 January against the six-time BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, accusing him of sexual exploitation and intimidation, demanding his resignation.
While Brij Bhushan refuted all the charges, a seven-member inquiry committee was formed, and the government assured that the WFI chief would step down till the investigation was completed, thus ending the protest.
An oversight committee headed by Mary Kom was appointed to complete the investigation. It submitted its report, which was not made public, and 7 May was chosen as the election date by the WFI.
On 23 April, the protests restarted at Jantar Mantar, with the wrestlers moving to the Supreme Court seeking a direction to register an FIR against Singh.
After sports ministry suspends WFI, ex-chief & BJP MP Brij Bhushan says ‘severed ties with wrestling’https://t.co/MLKbPruIUU
— ThePrintIndia (@ThePrintIndia) December 25, 2023
On 28 May, top wrestlers like Malik, Phogat and Punia were detained, a move that drew flak from the International Olympic Committee.
The protests were withdrawn after the sports minister assured that a police investigation would be conducted against Bhushan.
After the United World Wrestling suspended WFI for not conducting the elections on time, the WFI held the polls on 21 December.