Government to lift WFI’s suspension soon; Bajrang, Vinesh and Sakshee to skip trials

NEW DELHI: Wrestling Federation of India’s (WFI) suspension will soon be lifted by the sports ministry, and the federation’s executive body, headed by Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh’s close aide, Sanjay Singh, will be given the go-ahead to hold the selection trials for the Paris Olympics qualifiers, TOI has learnt.

According to sources, the ministry will tell the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) to sort out the mess affecting the country’s wrestling community and offer a solution to the protesting group of wrestlers, including the trio of Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat and Sakshee Malikkh.

It’s likely that the IOA-run three-member ad-hoc committee will soon get dissolved, handing over the working of WFI to the panel headed by Sanjay Singh. It’s been learnt that the ministry would like to wait for the trials to conclude on March 10 and 11 at the IG stadium here before lifting the suspension. A call by the ad-hoc body to hold separate trials on the same dates in Sonepat and Patiala, respectively, will be withdrawn.

The development marks a significant shift from the ministry’s earlier stance where it had suspended the WFI soon after its elections last December for non-adherence of the sports code and for violating the federation’s own constitution.

This has come after the United World Wrestling (UWW), the sport’s global governing body, lifted the suspension of the Indian body and authorised it to send the entries to UWW events, including Olympic qualifiers.

After the WFI’s call to hold the trials and the ministry offering the IG stadium as a venue, the trio of Vinesh, Bajrang and Sakshee have jointly decided to skip the event in protest while raising questions on the government’s silence.

It’s been learnt that the three wrestlers and Sakshee’s husband Satywart Kadiyan, have filed an urgent petition in the Delhi High Court seeking a stay on the trials. The matter will be heard on Friday. The wrestlers are banking on the court’s intervention to stop the trials, since the ministry’s hands are tied owing to the lifting of WFI’s suspension by UWW.

“I won’t compete in the trials if it’s conducted by Sanjay Singh. Similarly, Vinesh and Sakshee, too, won’t participate in it. We will compete only if it’s conducted by the ministry or ad-hoc body. For us, the WFI is still under suspension from the ministry and they can’t hold the trials,” Bajrang said.

Singh had written individual mails to Bajrang, Vinesh and Sakshee, inviting them to appear in trials. While Vinesh won the gold medal at the Jaipur Nationals in the women’s 55kg category, Bajrang and Sakshee had skipped the meet.


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