Vinesh Phogat desires oversight committee to be disbanded, appeals for brand new committee to listen to wrestlers’ views

Vinesh Phogat desires the Sports Ministry-appointed oversight committee to be disbanded and a brand new committee to be shaped to listen to the views of the wrestlers towards the WFI chief.

New Delhi ,UPDATED: Jan 24, 2023 18:09 IST

Vinesh Phogat in the course of the protest towards the WFI chief. (PTI Photo)

By India Today Web Desk: The 2022 Commonwealth Games gold medallist Vinesh Phogat expressed her disappointment with the Sports Ministry-appointed oversight committee, urging it to be disbanded.

Phogat appealed for a brand new committee to be shaped to listen to and embrace the views of wrestlers, because the athletes have been “not happy” with the oversight committee.

“We want this oversight committee to be disbanded and a new committee to be formed taking our views and choice of ours (members) to be included in the committee. This is a matter of females and is very serious… we hope the ministry will listen to us,” Phogat to India Today.

The Sports Ministry appointed an oversight committee on January 23. Indian boxing nice M C Mary Kom was named to chair the five-member committee to investigate into the allegations towards the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.

The committee was additionally handed the responsibility to look into the day-to-day administration of the federation. The oversight committee additionally consists of Olympic medallist wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt, former badminton participant and Mission Olympic Cell member Trupti Murgunde, ex-TOPS CEO Crd (Retd) Rajesh Rajagopalan and former SAI govt director – groups – Radhica Sreeman.

The Sports Ministry has given 4 weeks to the committee to finish its enquiry. The determination was taken after wrestlers ended their protest following a second spherical of talks with the Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur on Friday.

“With an effort to safeguard the interest of athletes, following complaints by wrestlers of sexual harassment by the President, other officials and coaches of the Wrestling Federation of India, and to promote good governance in WFI following allegations of financial mismanagement and arbitrariness by athletes, the Ministry of Sports has formed an Oversight Committee to enquire into the allegations of sexual misconduct, harassment and/intimidation, financial irregularities and administrative lapses, levelled by prominent sportspersons,” a SAI assertion learn.

“The Oversight Committee will also undertake the day-to-day administration of WFI, during the course of the enquiry. The oversight committee will complete the enquiry within 4 weeks.

“Further, the Ministry has instructed the manager committee of WFI to abstain from managing the day-to-day actions of the federation, with rapid impact, till additional communication,” the assertion added.

Published On:

Jan 24, 2023