World body suspends Wrestling Federation of India for failing to hold elections

 

The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) has been suspended by United World Wrestling (UWW), the organization that oversees wrestling, for failing to hold elections in the allotted time. The implication of this is that Indian wrestlers will not be able to represent their country at the 2023 World Championships. The most recent ban adds to the WFI's turbulent past. In January and May of previous years, the federation was threatened with suspension. Leading Indian wrestlers criticised the WFI's operations and accused Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, the organization's then-president, of sexual harassment. As a result, an ad hoc committee established by the Indian Olympic Association and led by Bhupender Singh Bajwa is currently in charge of the day-to-day activities of the WFI.

What’s next for Indian Wrestlers?

Indian wrestlers must compete as 'neutral athletes' in the forthcoming Olympic-qualifying World Championships, starting on September 16, as the WFI's membership has been suspended. This is a direct result of the Bhupender Singh Bajwa-led special committee's inability to hold the polls within the allotted 45 days. However, as the submissions were made by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) rather than the WFI, Indian competitors will still have the chance to represent their country at the upcoming Asian Games, which begin on September 23.

When India's top wrestlers objected against the WFI's operation and claimed that its then-president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh had harassed female wrestlers, the WFI was suspended first in January and then again in May. WFI is currently run on a day-to-day basis by an ad hoc committee that was established by the Indian Olympic Association and is chaired by Bhupender Singh Bajwa.

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