'What's happening should never happen,' - Gold medalist Neeraj Chopra comes out in support of wrestlers
Neeraj Chopra comes out in support of wrestlers protesting at Jantar Mantar
Days after several wrestlers returned to Jantar Mantar in New Delhi to resume protests against the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh over the allegations of him sexually harassing female wrestlers in the past, Olympic gold medalist Neeraj Chopra has come out in support of the grapplers.
Neeraj, who became the first Indian track and field athlete to win a gold medal in Javelin event at the Summer Games in Tokyo 2021, posted on Twitter, saying what is happening should have never happenedand that it's a shame the medal winners haveto go through this. He added this being a sensitive issue, it must be dealt fairly, and justice needs to be brought to the table.
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Neeraj wrote, “It hurts me to see our athletes on the streets demanding justice. They have worked hard to represent our great nation and make us proud. As a nation, we are responsible for safeguarding the integrity and dignity of every individual, athlete or not. What’s happening should never happen. This is a sensitive issue, and must be dealt with in an impartial and transparent manner. Pertaining authorities must take quick action in order to ensure that justice is served.”
Meanwhile, Sakshi Malik, Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia, are among the known faces who are sitting at Jantar Mantar, raising their voice against WFI chief and some members of the authority.
While many former sports personalities have come in support of them, including another gold medal winner from India, Abhinav Bindra, PT USA – who is the head of the IOA, recently said the wrestlers should have contacted the IOA before taking the matter to the streets, as it is hampering India’s image on the world stage.
“Wrestlers staging protests on the streets amounts to indiscipline. It is tarnishing the image of India,” PT Usha told the media.
Replying to her, Malik said, “I respect PT Usha. She has inspired us. But I want to ask ma’am, women wrestlers have come forward, raised the issue of harassment. Can’t we protest as well?”
“In the IOA committee, we gave our statements. IOA committee members cried as well. They had assured action will be taken. No action has been taken,” she added.
These wrestlers even approached the police and asked them to lodge the FIR against the alleged Brij Bhushan, but the police denied filing an FIR despite repeated requests.
