Mahesh Pal was working in his fields in Aligarh when he received a call from the warden of athletics academy at Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, saying that his son Palendra was admitted to a hospital after being diagnosed with brain fever late on Tuesday.
The 18-year-old sprinter was found hanging in his hostel room on Tuesday.
“The warden asked me to come to Delhi immediately as Palendra was admitted to a hospital. I rushed to Delhi and informed other relatives, who are in Delhi, to go and check his status,” said Mahesh.
Mahesh reached Delhi on Tuesday night and went straight to Safdarjung Hospital, where he was informed that his son was on ventilator support. While waiting outside, others present there told him that the athlete was found hanging. On Wednesday morning, the doctors declared the athlete dead. Mahesh did not inform his wife about the demise of their only child till Wednesday afternoon.
Just after Diwali, Palendra had gone back to the academy on November 8. “He called me in the afternoon, asking for money. I had promised to transfer the money to his account after I sell paddy. I transfer money to him every month. He sounded normal on the call,” the father said. On hearing about Palendra, his friends and juniors went to the Safdarjung mortuary. They said Palendra recently passed the physical examination of Army recruitment. Due to his achievement in sports, he was exempted from written examination, they said, adding that the athlete was waiting for his joining letter.
Inspiration for many
“Palendra was an inspiration for many young students back in his village in Aligarh. In the past five years, he had achieved a lot. He was preparing for an upcoming international sports event,” said Kuldeep Singh, an athlete.
He added that Palendra was preparing for the next Commonwealth Games. “We wanted him to represent the country in 2024 Olympics and win gold. He was preparing for the events. We have lost our hope, he was a bright sportsman,” said Gaurav, his friend.
‘All allegations are false’
Palendra’s father refuted the claim by a Sports Authority of India (SAI) official, who alleged that he had an argument with his son over the phone. “The allegations are completely false. He was my only child and I have always supported him. My son had created a record by completing 100-metre race in just 11.01 seconds in the junior-level national athletics in Ranchi in 2015,” said Mahesh.
Suicide prevention helpline: Sanjivini, Society for Mental Health,Telephone: 011-4076 9002, Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m. -7.30 p.m.
