PT Usha blasts wrestlers for 'tarnishing India's image', Punia says 'we expected support'

Bajrang Punia and Vinesh Phogat sit in protest (Pic: AFP)

Indian Olympic Association (IOA) President PT Usha on Thursday came down heavily on the aggrieved wrestlers, stating that their ongoing protest on the streets amounts to indiscipline and is tarnishing the country's image.

The country's top wrestlers, including Vinesh Phogat, Bajrang Punia, and Sakshi Malik, resumed their protest against WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh on Sunday, three months after they called off their sit-in demonstration following the formation of an oversight committee to probe into the sexual allegations. Meanwhile, on Wednesday, they urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to seek his time to discuss the sexual harassment allegations against his party's MP Sharan Singh. The Sports Ministry has not yet made public the findings of a six-member oversight panel that submitted its report on April 5.

"Wrestlers' staging protest on streets amounts to indiscipline. It is tarnishing the image of India," Usha told reporters after IOA's Executive Committee meeting.

The IOA also instituted a three-member ad-hoc panel, including former shooter Suma Shirur, Wushu Association of India chief Bhupendra Singh Bajwa and headed by a yet-to-be-named retired high court judge, to run the affairs of the WFI until a new body is elected.

Also Read: Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh indicates he won't go down without a fight

The IOA and the government had managed to placate the wrestlers with assurances to probe their allegations against Sharan and the WFI after the protest first broke out in January.

Responding to Usha's statement, Punia told PTI, "We did not expect such a harsh response from IOA President PT Usha, we expected support from her."

Earlier yesterday, Vinesh also appealed to all athletes, across disciplines, to stand united with them. "Can't we put behind greed, fear and self-interest behind? I appeal to all sportspersons of the nation, Olympic medallists, national medallists and world championship medallists to come together and stay united. If we come together, there is no reason why we can't be number one nation in Olympics one day."

Hours later, Olympic champion shooter Abhinav Bindra took to Twitter to announce his solidarity with the athletes. Meanwhile, former Indian women's hockey team captain Rani Rampal refused to have her say on the ongoing protest at the Jantar Mantar. Asked about whether she had thought that there would come a time when women wrestlers would have to sit in protest, she replied, "Life is very uncertain, nobody thinks that a day like this could come."

(With PTI & IANS inputs)