A day after a video went viral on social media, where Kabaddi players could be seen serving food from a toilet in Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur, the national Kabaddi Federation washed their hands from the controversy, stating the body was not at all involved in organising the event. The players seen in the video were reported to be taking part at the U-16 competition.
The incident created a furore among politicians, sports celebrities, and the general public, condemning the act. Reacting to the video, the authorities immediately suspended the district sports officer for laxity and blacklisted the caterer.
"The Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India (AKFI) has no role in the organisation of the tournament. It was a purely a Uttar Pradesh government-related event. They (organisers) have done their own arrangement," S P Garg, the Delhi High Court-appointed administrator who has been running AKFI since 2018, told PTI on Wednesday.
When enquired about the tournament, which was claimed to be a state level event tournament, how it was conducted without the sanction from the national federation, Garg said, "We are in no way involved in the organisation of the tournament. Humara koi lene dena nahin hai (we have no concern with that). We had no information (about the tournament)."
UP State Kabaddi Association secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh echoed similar views, mentioning the event was not in its annual calendar. "The tournament was organised by the state government's sports department. Our role was to provide only the technical support. We sent some officials to conduct the event and the selection committee, nothing else," Singh was quoted as saying in the same report.
{{/usCountry}}UP State Kabaddi Association secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh echoed similar views, mentioning the event was not in its annual calendar. "The tournament was organised by the state government's sports department. Our role was to provide only the technical support. We sent some officials to conduct the event and the selection committee, nothing else," Singh was quoted as saying in the same report.
{{/usCountry}}"We have our state level events like open championships. This event (U-16 girls tournament in Saharanpur) was not in our annual calendar of events."
He also stated that the state government is taking strict action and an inquiry committee will take feedback from players from each of the 16 divisions (mandals) that took part in the tournament.
A purported video of the incident that surfaced on social media showed cooked food was stored in the toilet at Saharanpur's Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar Stadium from where kabaddi players took it themselves.
The state-level sub-junior girls' kabaddi tournament was held from September 16 to 18 in which over 300 players competed.
Additional Chief Secretary (Sports) Navneet Sehgal had told PTI that Saharanpur District Sports Officer Animesh Saxena was suspended on Monday.
-with PTI inputs