The renewed protest by the wrestlers at Jantar Mantar is picking up pace and attention from everywhere as Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat and other grapplers continue to fight for their demands. Anurag Thakur, the current Minister of Sports, held a press meeting to address the situation and assured that no one’s claims were left unattended. The government has also come into action with the setup of an oversight committee to look into the alleged claims against the Wrestling Federation of India Chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.
The wrestlers protest led by Punia, Phogat, and Sakshi Malik is turning heads this time. Protestors received support from eminent personalities like Kapil Dev, Neeraj Chopra, and Harbhajan Singh. However, some are also critical of the ongoing situation. The Sports Ministry is seeking methods to tackle the problem.
Anurag Thakur mentioned meeting the wrestlers for 2-3 days and spending nearly 12 hours with them to hear out their grievances and address the alleged wrongdoings. Thakur also claimed that everyone’s pleas in the established oversight committee was heard. He added on giving women the priority to speak and let the female athletes address their sides. The committee also laid its recommendations for the issue.
The current Minister of Sports assured all steps are heading in one direction and called it a process. He also added that they can lodge their complaints at any police station. Thakur mentioned on the oversight committee recommending free and fair elections as IOA establishes their ad-hoc committee to run the Wrestling Federation of India. The Minister of Sports focused on solving the problems deliberately.
Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat share contrary claims over Anurag Thakur statements
However, Bajrang Punia and Vinesh Phogat have conflicting claims about Anurag Thakur’s statements. Punia alleged that Anurag Thakur sat with the wrestlers for 2-3 minutes, and his officials were mediating with the protesting grapplers instead of him. The Sports Minister only sat among the protesters for a few minutes, according to Phogat. She continued by describing how they intimidated the wrestlers at the meetings meant to find a solution.
