After writing a letter to PM Modi and announcing the return of the Padmashree award, Bajrang Punia went to the PM’s residence to return the award, but when the police did not allow him to go further, he placed his Padmashree award on the footpath in front of the PM’s residence.
साक्षी मलिक के संन्यास के बाद पहलवान बजरंग पूनिया ने लौटाया पद्मश्री, PM मोदी के घर के बाहर फुटपाथ पर छोड़ा
Tokyo Olympics bronze medalist wrestler Bajrang Punia on Friday returned his Padma Shri award to the government in protest against no action being taken in the sexual harassment case against BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and his close aide Sanjay Singh becoming the president of the wrestling federation. He wrote a letter to PM Modi expressing his protest and announced to return the Padma Shri award. After this he went to the PM’s residence to return the award, but when the police did not allow him to go further, he placed his Padma Shri on the footpath in front of the PM’s residence.
A day earlier, on these issues, wrestler Sakshi Malik had announced her retirement from wrestling. A day after a tearful Sakshi Malik announced her decision to quit wrestling in protest against the election of Sanjay Singh, a close aide of Brij Bhushan Singh, as the president of the Wrestling Federation of India, Bajrang wrote a letter to PM Modi, expressing his disappointment over the WFI elections. In a letter addressed to the Prime Minister, Punia has outlined the reasons behind his decision to return the prestigious award.
Bajrang Punia wrote, “The government and the people gave a lot of respect. Should I continue to suffocate under the burden of this respect? In the year 2019, I was honored with Padmashree. Also honored with Khel Ratna and Arjuna Award. I was very happy when I received this honour. It felt like life was successful. But today I am even more sad than that and these honors are hurting me.
Bajrang Punia further wrote in the letter, “The only reason why we get this honor for wrestling is that our fellow women wrestlers have to leave wrestling for their safety. We “respected” wrestlers could not do anything. Women After insulting the wrestlers, I will not be able to live my life in a “respectable” way. Such a life will continue to haunt me for the rest of my life. That is why I am returning this “honor” to you.
On Thursday, 2016 Rio Olympics bronze medalist Sakshi Malik had announced her retirement from wrestling after Sanjay Singh was elected president of the WFI. Before the press conference, Sakshi took off her shoes and placed them on the stage and cried, saying, “I am disappointed and will not compete in wrestling anymore.”
Sakshi Malik told the media in Delhi on Thursday, “In the end, we slept on the streets for 40 days but I want to thank many people of our country who came to support us during the protests earlier this year. If Brij Bhushan Singh’s business partner and close associate is elected as WFI President, I will quit wrestling.”
Immediately after the election results were declared on Thursday, Brij Bhushan, regardless of the allegations against him, called this victory a victory for the wrestlers of the country. He expressed hope that the wrestling activities, which were halted for 11 months during the protests, will now resume under the new leadership. Also, on Sakshi Malik’s retirement, Brij Bhushan Singh very nonchalantly said that he had nothing to do with it.
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