The suspended president of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), Sanjay Singh has confirmed that his committee will not be moving court, and instead appeal for a suspension revocation through dialogue with the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports (MYAS).
Following the executive committee meeting of WFI on Tuesday, 16 January, Singh confirmed his intentions of not having any ‘clash’ with the government. However, he further stated a WFI delegation will be meeting the sports ministry with the appeal of repealing the suspension.
“We don't want any clash with the government. We are not moving court as of today. A WFI delegation with try and speak with the sports ministry and seek lifting of suspension,” Singh told PTI after the meeting.
Why Did the Sports Ministry Suspend the Sanjay Singh-Led WFI Committee?
Albeit Sanjay Singh – who is believed to be a close aide of former WFI president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh – was elected as the new chief following a victory against wrestler Anita Sheoran, he was suspended by the sports ministry only three days after the election.
Explaining their decision, the ministry cited violation of WFI’s ‘constitutional provisions’, and also the National Sports Development Code, by Singh and his newly-elected committee.
The decisions made by the newly elected executive body of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) demonstrate a blatant disregard for the established legal and procedural norms, violating both the WFI's constitutional provisions and the National Sports Development Code. The actions smack of complete arbitrariness on part of the President, which is against the settled principles of good governance and devoid of transparency and due process.Sports Ministry
Despite Suspension, Sanjay Singh Plans To Conduct Nationals
Following the suspension of Sanjay Singh and his committee, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) formed an ad-hoc committee to oversee the operations of the wrestling federation.
The three-strong committee – chaired by Bhupinder Singh Bajwa, who also serves as the president of the Wushu Association of India – issued a statement on 3 January, where they announced they will conduct nationals for U15 and U20 categories within the next six weeks.
Singh, despite being suspended, has refuted ad-hoc committee’s plans of conducting nationals, claiming all the state units will be sending their teams to the WFI-organised nationals instead.
“Neither us, nor any state federations have any knowledge about the national championship being held by the ad hoc committee. All the state associations have written to the Sports Ministry and UWW (United World Wrestling) that they will be participating in the national championship held by WFI,” he told PTI.
(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.)