Sports Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Sunday said his ministry had received badminton player Saina Nehwal’s nomination application for Padma Bhushan only on Saturday, but said it would “examine the possibility of recommending” her name for the award on Monday.
The Badminton Association of India, however, maintained that it had sent in Saina’s nomination for the prestigious award in August last year.
Clarifying, Mr. Sonowal said: “I have seen reports in sections of the media that Sports Ministry didn’t recommend the name of Ms. Saina Nehwal for the Padma Bhushan award. I have come to know that Sports Ministry had not received any nomination from the Badminton Association of India prior to January 3, 2015.”
“A packet containing a letter, dated August 9, 2014, nominating Ms. Nehwal for the Padma Bhushan award was received by the staff at my residence on January 3, 2015,” he said.
“I would also like to categorically state that Ms. Saina Nehwal has made every Indian proud and I sincerely hope she will continue to bring laurels to Indian sports. I would like to assure everyone that my ministry would examine the possibility of recommending her name separately,” he said.
The BAI, however, said it had got an acknowledgement of the letter’s receipt from the Ministry last August.
BAI, however, said it had sent the letter of nomination in August last year and it has got the acknowledgment of receipt from the sports ministry.
“We had sent the recommendation on August 9th and we also received an acknowledgment for the same from Sport Ministry. I don’t know what is the confusion. In fact, when Saina had called the officials of the ministry, initially they said they haven’t received the letter but later said it is there but they didn’t consider,” BAI president Akhilesh Das Gupta said. -
