.jpg?rect=0%2C0%2C2000%2C1125&auto=format%2Ccompress&fmt=webp&width=720)
Before a Delhi High Court decision frustrated star Indian wrestler Sushil Kumar’s hopes of taking part in the 2016 Rio Olympics, several senior BJP leaders turned down his fervent appeals for a special trial against Narsingh Yadav, that would have settled which of the two would represent India in the 74 kg category in Brazil.
Feeling slighted by the affront from the BJP leaders, including Home Minister Rajnath Singh and the then Union Sports Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, among others, a humiliated Sushil Kumar is now contemplating retiring from all forms of the sport.
Political Kushti
Sushil won a bronze and a silver medal in the 2008 and 2012 Olympics, respectively, in the 66 kg category. He won a gold medal in the 74 kg category at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games in 2014.
Besides Rajnath and Sonowal, Sushil Kumar was up against a powerful Maharashtra BJP leaders’ lobby, including Road Transport and Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis who, Wrestling Federation of India sources disclosed, applied pressure on WFI President and BJP MP from UP Brijbhushan Sharan Singh to not consider Sushil’s bid for the Rio Olympics.
Sushil’s desperate attempt to reach out to
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also failed when the PMO dilly-dallied on granting
him an appointment. In a meeting between Sushil’s father-in-law Satpal Singh,
who is said to be close to the Congress, and Rajnath, the latter is learnt to
have said that he was not in a position to help.
The Maharashtra Link
A month or so before a harrowed Sushil dragged the WFI to court, Brijbhushan, who is the BJP MP from Gonda in UP, and is said to be from a wrestling background, took the unilateral decision to cancel the special trial between Sushil and Narsingh (originally from UP but a resident of Jogeshwari in Mumbai) scheduled sometime in May.
WFI sources said that behind the “politics” that put paid to Sushil’s dreams of going to Rio was the hand of Venod Sharma, iTV channel proprietor from Haryana with political ambitions. In December 2015, when the Pro-Wrestling League (PWL) was launched under the stewardship of Sharma and his son Kartikeya, who owns Pro Sportify. The person who worked closely with Sharma to make the Pro-Wrestling League a reality is Dr Manju Sachdeva, mooh-boli (informally adopted) daughter of senior BJP leader and former Union minister Murli Manohar Joshi.
Representing the WFI, Brijbhushan sold all rights on private wrestling events, including the league, for Rs 50 lakh to Pro Sportify. When plans were afoot to launch the league, Brijbhushan wanted Sushil to be the “face of PWL”. On his part, Sushil wanted an “exclusive” relationship and accordingly negotiated the terms and conditions with the WFI.
The auctions took place when Sushil left for Georgia, in the Russian Federation, for training in November 2015. The six teams were the Bengaluru Yoddhas (owned by Sajjan Jindal), Uttar Pradesh Warriors, Haryana Hammers (Kartikeya Sharma), Punjab Royals, Revanat Mumbai Garuda and Dilli Veers. UP Warriors picked up Sushil for Rs 38.2 lakh but Yogeshwar Dutt, who had won gold at the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games, pipped Sushil to be grabbed for Rs 39.3 by the Haryana Hammers.
When this upset Sushil, the WFI sought to placate him by suggesting that the UP Warriors pay him an additional Rs 11 lakh. Claiming that he had been “slighted and not respected”, Sushil pulled out of the league. The WFI, however, continued to pay a Rs 75 lakh annual grant for his training for the upcoming Olympics competition.
Flawed Quota System
While sources close to Sushil claim that he was not nursing a shoulder injury and was physically fit, a section of WFI officials said that the main ground for his pulling out of the league was his fear that the injury would get aggravated a few months before the Olympics. Nevertheless, Sushil’s decision to withdraw from the league embarrassed both Venod Sharma and Brijbhushan.
After the 66 kg category, in which Sushil fought, was abolished in 2013, a new category – 65 kg – was created and which Haryana’s Yogeshwar Dutt took to. But Narsingh, who at that point in time had won gold in the 2012 Asian Games and the Delhi Commonwealth Games, was in the 74 kg category. The WFI decided to “sideline” Narsingh and Sushil was allowed to take part for India in the 2014 Glasgow CWG where he won gold.
After Glasgow Sushil took the decision to stick to the 74 kg category and was given a Rs 75 lakh central grant that would go towards training for the 2016 Olympics. In the 2015 World Wrestling Championship in Las Vegas, Narsingh won bronze and was set to take part in the 2016 Olympics. Sushil did not take part because he was nursing a shoulder injury.
The WFI, which, unlike other Indian sports bodies, does not have well-laid-out rules on trials insisted that it would hold trials to decide whether Sushil or Narsingh would make it to Rio under the quota system.
WFI Sources said that Narsingh, who was backed by a section of BJP leaders, refused to compete with Sushil who had insisted on a trial to decide whether he or his wrestling colleague would go to Rio. It was Sushil’s contention that a place on the Indian team belongs to the country rather than an individual.
Also read:
Sushil Kumar Deserved a Trial, Write His Lawyers For The Quint
iTV’s Response to The Quint’s Story
On June 30, The Quint’s Chandan Nandy reported how politics was the driving force behind the decision to select wrestler Narsingh Yadav to represent India in the 74 kg category at the Rio Olympics. The story highlighted how Sushil Kumar’s decision to pull out of the Pro-Wrestling League in 2015 backfired against the wrestler.
The Quint’s story focused on a behind-the-scenes account of how Sushil Kumar was edged out of competing in Rio. In response to The Quint’s story, a representative of iTV network wrote the following on July 2:
Letter to the Editor
This is to humbly bring to your notice that a few of the points made by the author are not factually correct. Following are the contentious points from the copy which was published:
1. WFI sources said that behind the “politics” that put paid to Sushil’s dreams of going to Rio was the hand of Venod Sharma, iTV channel proprietor from Haryana with political ambitions. In December 2015, when the Pro-Wrestling League (PWL) was launched under the stewardship of Sharma and his son Kartikeya, who owns Pro Sportify. The person who worked closely with Sharma to make the Pro-Wrestling League a reality is Dr Manju Sachdeva, mooh-boli (informally adopted) daughter of senior BJP leader and former Union minister Murli Manohar Joshi.
Correction: Mentioning of Mr. Venod Sharma’s name in the article seems to be purely a malicious attempt to cause him disrepute. Mr. Venod Sharma is neither ITV’s Channel Proprietor nor does he hold any designation whatsoever in ITV. He is also not the shareholder or Director of Pro Sportify Private Limited, which runs and operates Pro Wrestling League. He is not involved in any manner in the running of the ITV channels or the League and is not concerned with Sushil Kumar or any wrestler in any manner. Names of other people are also mentioned incorrectly and the whole article seems to be ill researched and written with malicious intent to defame and cause loss of reputation.
2. Representing the WFI, Brijbhushan sold all rights on private wrestling events, including the league, for Rs 50 lakh to Pro Sportify. When plans were afoot to launch the league, Brijbhushan wanted Sushil to be the “face of PWL”. On his part, Sushil wanted an “exclusive” relationship and accordingly negotiated the terms and conditions with the WFI.
Correction: Pro Sportify is the commercial partner of Wrestling Federation of India for Pro Wrestling League and the words “sold all rights” have been used most inappropriately. The Commercials are also not mentioned correctly, again an attempt to mislead. Sushil’s version has already been put before the Hon’ble High Court and decision taken accordingly. We thus feel it is not correct to comment on the same.
3. The auctions took place when Sushil left for Georgia, in the Russian Federation, for training in November 2015. The six teams were the Bengaluru Yoddhas (owned by Sajjan Jindal), Uttar Pradesh Warriors, Haryana Hammers (Kartikeya Sharma), Punjab Royals, Revanat Mumbai Garuda and Dilli Veers. UP Warriors picked up Sushil for Rs 38.2 lakh but Yogeshwar Dutt, who had won gold at the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games, pipped Sushil to be grabbed for Rs 39.3 by the Haryana Hammers.
Correction: Team Haryana Hammers is owned by Olive Sports Private Limited (Mr. Dipin Kapur) and not Mr. Kartikeya Sharma.
The number of factual mistakes and deliberate inclusion of names of individuals not connected to the issue in any manner only indicates the malicious intention of the author. We would urge you to please take a look in this matter urgently as it is of serious concern to us.
The Quint’s Response
At the onset we would place on record our appreciation for the cooperation received from your organisation and especially Kartikeya Sharma regarding the story in question. We value your comments and look forward to sustained cooperation in the days to come.
The Quint is a responsible stakeholder of the media industry and is committed to the highest journalistic standards. Ethical journalism is a cornerstone of all our engagements and we have a stringent mechanism and quality control along with research methodologies so that the content on our platform is true and free of errors.
The Quint reiterates that the content on its platform is aimed at initiating informed debate and does not in any manner intend to hurt sentiments of any entity or person. In this light the feedback from iTV and readers helps us in consistently improving our content and ensuring that the platform is able to deliver credible journalism.
Also read:
Sushil Kumar Deserved a Trial, Write His Lawyers For The Quint
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)