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Someday, there will be justice: 'Dishonoured' Bajrang returns Padma award
The four-time World Championships medallist left his Padma Shri along with a letter addressed to the PM on Kartavya Path
Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist Bajrang Punia on Friday returned his Padma Shri award, country's fourth highest civilian honour, in protest over the election of Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh's aide Sanjay Singh as Wrestling Federation of India's (WFI) president. Punia, along with Rio Olympics bronze medallist Sakshi Malik and double World Championships medallist Vinesh Phogat, was the face of wrestlers' protest against Brij Bhushan over the alleged sexual harassment of six female wrestlers.
The 29-year-old took to X to announce his decision. "I am going to return my Padma Shri to the Prime Minister. This is a letter to say that," he wrote. "Respected Prime Minister, hope your health is well. You must be busy serving the nation. I am writing this to draw your attention to what is happening to the wrestlers of the country. You must be aware that the women wrestlers started a protest in January this year against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, accusing him of sexual harassment. I too joined their protest. The protest stopped after the government promised strong action,” the three-time Commonwealth Games medallist wrote.
“But even after three months, when there was no FIR against Brij Bhushan, we took to the streets in April so that Delhi Police at least files an FIR. Ultimately, we had to go to court to get an FIR registered against Singh. There were 19 complainants in January but the number came down to 7 by April. This means Brij Bhushan exerted his influence and forced the other 12 wrestlers to retract,” he continued.
“Our protest went on for 40 days during which one more complainant backed out. There was a lot of pressure on us. Our protest site was vandalised and we were chased out of Delhi. We did not know what to do next so we went to immerse our medals in the Ganga. We were stopped by farmer leaders and coaches. Then, a minister from your cabinet called us up and assured us justice. We also met the Home Minister who promised us justice and said he will ensure that neither Brij Bhushan nor his family or loyalists will be part of WFI. So, we ended our protest. We were told that the government will sort out WFI while the fight for justice will continue in the courts; we found both those arguments logical,” Punia added.
“But in the WFI election on December 21, the federation came under Brij Bhushan once again. He himself said he would prevail over the federation like old times. Under tremendous pressure, Sakshi Malik announced her retirement from wrestling. We spent last night weeping. We did not understand what to do, or where to go. The government has given us a lot. Do I bury myself under those honours? I was conferred with the Padma Shri in 2019. I also received the Arjuna and Khel Ratna awards. When I got these awards, I was over the moon. But today the sadness weighs more and these awards are eating me. And the reason is a woman wrestler left the sport fearing her safety,” the wrestler said.
“Sport has empowered our women athletes and changed their lives. Earlier, no one could imagine girls and boys playing together in villages but now girls are travelling the world to compete. However, those who have won the election, their shadow scares women athletes. You would have seen their garlanded pictures too. The women who could have been the brand ambassadors of beti bachao, beti padhao are now quitting the sport. And we, the wrestlers who were ‘honoured’, could not do anything. I can’t live as a Padma Shri awardee while our women wrestlers are insulted. Hence I return this award to you,” he continued.
"We were introduced as Padma Shri, Khel Ratna or Arjuna awardees at functions. From now on, if anyone would address me in such a way, I will detest it because despite getting all the honours, we could not ensure an honourable life to a woman wrestler. I know someday there will be justice," Punia concluded, signing off the letter as a "dishonoured wrestler."
Punia, along with his sparring partner Jitender Kumar, was headed to the Prime Minister's residence but was stopped by policemen at Kartavya Path. He then kept his Padma award on the pavement and left. The award and the letter were taken by the police to Kartavya Path police station.
One of India's most successful wrestlers, Punia, in the course of his protest, had repeatedly claimed that getting justice for the aggrieved wrestlers meant more to him than any award or medal. After a late night scuffle with Delhi Police at Jantar Mantar in May, a distraught Punia had claimed he was ready to return his awards. On Friday, he did just that.
Meanwhile, WFI on Friday requested the world governing body UWW to lift the ban imposed on it and also announced that it will host the senior National Championships from January 28 in Maharashtra's Ahmednagar.
