Vinesh Phogat returns Khel Ratna and Arjuna Awards, leaves them at Kartavya Path

Vinesh Phogat said their lives were not like those “fancy government advertisements” that speak of women’s empowerment and upliftment

Vinesh Phogat’s Arjuna and Khel Ratna awards are seen at the Kartavya Path in New Delhi on December 30, 2023 after the wrestler left them there as a mark of protest. Photo: X/@BajrangPunia via ANI

Multiple World Championship medallist Vinesh Phogat on Saturday returned her Khel Ratna and Arjuna Award, keeping the two awards lying in the middle of national capital's Kartavya Path after Delhi Police stopped her from reaching the Prime Minister's office.

On Tuesday, the Asian Games gold medallist grappler had decided to return her Khel Ratna and Arjuna Award to the government, saying such honours have become meaningless at a time when wrestlers are struggling to get justice.

Wrestler Vinesh Phogat walks with her Arjuna and Khel Ratna Awards, India’s highest national sports awards, before leaving them on a pavement near the Prime Minister’s office as a mark of protest in New Delhi on December 30, 2023. | Photo Credit: PTI

Ms. Phogat had announced her decision in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

On Saturday, she attempted to reach the Prime Minister's office to return her awards but the police prevented her from reaching the PMO.

यह दिन किसी खिलाड़ी के जीवन में न आए। देश की महिला पहलवान सबसे बुरे दौर से गुज़र रही हैं। #vineshphogatpic.twitter.com/bT3pQngUuI

— Bajrang Punia 🇮🇳 (@BajrangPunia) December 30, 2023

As a mark of protest, she left the awards at the Kartavya Path and they were later picked up by Delhi Police.

Ms. Phogat, along with Olympic medallists Sakshi Malik and Bajrang Punia, had protested against the election of Sanjay Singh, a close aide of former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) President Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, who had been accused of sexual harassment by the three well-known grapplers.

Sakshi had also announced her retirement from wrestling soon after Sanjay Singh's appointment as WFI Chief.

However, the Sports Ministry had later suspended the newly-elected panel for not following the provisions of its own constitution while taking decisions while asking the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) to constitute an ad-hoc panel to manage the affairs of the sports body.

In her letter posted on X, formerly Twitter, Ms. Phogat had said that their lives are not like those "fancy government advertisements" that talk about women's empowerment and upliftment.

Acting on the sports ministry directive, the IOA on Wednesday constituted a three-member ad hoc committee to run the day-to-day affairs of the WFI.