India’s wrestling landscape has witnessed a seismic shift since Sakshi Malik’s historic Olympic bronze in 2016. But behind the glory lies a story of perseverance, self doubt and resilience.
As I delve into her remarkable story, I realized that her struggles and triumphs resonated deeply. Let me take you through…
After her Olympic Triumph, Sakshi faced immense pressure to repeat her success. The weight of a Nation’s expectations, along with her own desire to excel, took a toll on her mental as well as her physical well-being. “The pressure is suffocating”, Sakshi revealed in one of her interviews. Every competition, every match, became a life-or-death situation. The stress affected her performance, leading to disappointing finishes in key tournaments. Her struggles serve a stark reminder that even champions are vulnerable to crushing weights of expectations.
In January of 2023, Sakshi Malik along with Bajrang Punia and Vinesh Phogat, protested against the wrestling federation of India (WFI).
The demands of protesting wrestlers have been very specific from the start. They have only spoken against one person and demanded action against him. He was the then Chief of the wrestling federation of India (WFI) and also political leader of BJP MP “Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh”. Well not anymore “Sanjay Singh” aka ‘Bablu’ loyalist of Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh is now the current president of WFI who defeated Anita Sheoran for the top post after which Olympic Bronze and Commonwealth Gold Medalist Sakshi Malik threatened to quit wrestling. Anita Sheoran btw was among the first wrestlers to publicly accuse Bhushan of Sexual Harassment, Corruption and Mismanagement.
The protest initially began at Jantar Mantar in January 2023 but was temporarily called off after the government promised to form an ‘Oversight Committee’. However, when the committee’s report was submitted on April 5, it wasn’t made public & so, the wrestlers felt that their concerns were being ignored. So after 3 months from January i.e April, they again started protesting. This time the protest gained publicity and the matter reached to The Supreme Court. So on April 28, 2023 after The Supreme Court’s intervention, Delhi Police finally registered 2 FIR’s against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh – one under POCSO Act which is for minors, & the other for outraging modesty. The wrestlers still continued their protest demanding Bhushan’s arrest.
According to wrestlers they say that the Oversight Committee has been threatening girls to not speak up against the President or else they would get killed.
It is alleged that Bhushan was touching girls in inappropriate places on the pretext of checking breath and many other things which he did, which were increasing to intolerable levels….
See, we live in a society where we hear these kinds of cases often “SHE IS COMPLAINING BUT SHE MUST HAVE DONE SOMETHING TOO” or “SHE MUST HAVE GIVEN HINTS”. Even within families victims are often silenced to protect the family’s reputation and because of which victims are afraid to speak up.
Many different rumors came by and allegations were imposed on both the parties but the biggest allegation was
“Why does politics have to be involved in this?”
Well, I think ” Agar Rajneeti kaam ke topic par nahi hogi toh kya sirf Hindu-Muslim par Rajneeti hogi?” I believe that political parties should always be open to any social movement, any protest & they can support if they want to.
New elections for President of WFI scheduled for May 2023. According to which no one could be a President for more than three times. Deepender Hooda( who actually wanted to become the WFI Chief back in 2011 but lost to Brij Bhushan) was quite sure of himself to become the President of WFI but lil did he knew that Bhushan had other plans to promote his son “Karan Bhushan Singh” on to the post of President.
But now the question was
• “Is PM Modi saving Brij Bhushan?”
See, Bhushan was considered a Bahubali typa politician and it was alleged that if the government removed him from his position, then in 2024 elections the BJP government will either have a hard time winning votes in this area. Perhaps this is a reason why PM Modi was so quiet about this issue.
After many other allegations and interrogations between parties.
THE CONCLUSION WAS!
# An Ad-hoc committee was formed to manage WFI affairs.
# Increased focus on wrestlers welfare and safety.
# Improved accountability and transparency in Indian sports governance.
# Karan Bhushan Singh’s presidency aspirations were thwarted.
# Brij Bhushan’s resignation as WFI President.
# And ofcourse Sakshi Malik’s retirement from Professional Wrestling in August, 2023.
“As one chapter closes, another opens, fuelled by the courage of those who dared to speak truth to power”.
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