Sports activities Ministry Asks Wrestling Federation To Cease All Ongoing Actions, Suspends Assistant Secretary

The Sports activities Ministry on Saturday suspended Wrestling Federation of India’s (WFI) assistant secretary Vinod Tomar, a fallout of the grapplers’ allegations of sexual harassment and corruption towards the sports activities physique’s chief, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. It has determined to droop Tomar, “with quick impact, to make sure correct functioning of WFI”. The ministry stated it has additionally directed the WFI to droop “all ongoing actions with quick impact”, together with the Rating Match in Gonda, UP, Sharan’s stronghold.

This comes a day after Sports activities Minister Anurag Thakur introduced the formation of an oversight committee to probe the costs levelled by a few of the nation’s prime wrestlers, together with Vinesh Phogat, Bajrang Punia, Sakshi Malik and Ravi Dahiya, towards Sharan and his physique.

Relating to Tomar, the ministry stated in a letter, which is in possession of the PTI, that his presence will probably be “detrimental to the event of this high-priority self-discipline”.

“The Ministry has taken notice of the reviews concerning the functioning of the WFI, together with the function of Shri Vinod Tomar and, has the explanations to imagine that his continued presence will probably be detrimental to the event of this high-priority self-discipline,” the ministry stated within the letter.

The aggrieved wrestlers had alleged that Tomar took bribes from athletes and was concerned in monetary corruption, serving to him to construct property value crores.

Based on sources, the ministry will announce the names of its oversight committee members on Sunday.

In a press launch, the ministry stated it “has communicated to the Wrestling Federation of India on Saturday that in view of the Authorities’s choice to nominate an Oversight Committee to analyze the assorted allegations raised by athletes towards the Federation, WFI will droop all ongoing actions with quick impact, except the Oversight Committee is formally appointed and takes over the each day functioning of WFI”.

It added, “In view of the course to droop all actions instantly, the Sports activities Ministry has requested WFI to additionally cancel the continued Rating Match in Gonda, UP.” On this regard, the ministry has additionally requested the WFI to return the entry charges charged to members for the continued occasion.

The oversight committee of the ministry can have the powers to take all choices on issues regarding Indian wrestling whereas additionally overseeing the day-to-day affairs of the federation.

Earlier within the day, the WFI had rejected all of the allegations, together with that of sexual harassment towards its president, and claimed that the wrestlers’ protest was motivated by a “hidden agenda to dislodge the present administration”.

The WFI denied all the costs in its response to the federal government’s discover and asserted that “there isn’t any scope for arbitrariness and mismanagement ” within the federation.

The ministry had sought an evidence from WFI after the nation’s prime wrestlers sat on a dharna and alleged that the federation chief sexually harassed ladies wrestlers and acts like a “dictator”.

Earlier than the wrestlers agreed to finish their protest, the Indian Olympic Affiliation had on Friday fashioned a seven-member committee of its personal, headed by M C Mary Kom, to analyze the costs towards Sharan.

The IOA panel was constituted even because the wrestlers’ sit-in protest entered the third day.

Apart from legendary boxer Mary Kom and wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt, the panel consists of archer Dola Banerjee and Indian Weightlifting Federation (IWLF) president and IOA treasurer Sahdev Yadav.

The IOA committee additionally has two advocates — Talish Ray and Shlok Chandra — in addition to former shuttler and IOA joint secretary Alaknanda Ashok, who’s its vice chairperson.

The choice was taken through the IOA’s emergency Government Council assembly, which was attended by the likes of Olympic champion shooter Abhinav Bindra, Olympic bronze medallist Yogeshwar, together with IOA president PT Usha and joint secretary Kalyan Chaubey.

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