Cong leader Hooda appeals to protesting wrestlers not to immerse their medals in river

Lucknow, May 30 (PTI) Hours ahead of the planned immersion of their medals in the Ganga, Congress leader Deepender Singh Hooda told the protesting wrestlers that they got these awards through hard work and not due to any kindness by BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.

The Rajya Sabha MP from Haryana told reporters that the wrestlers should not immerse their medals in the river.

The wrestlers have accused the BJP MP, who heads the Wrestling Federation of India, of sexual harassment and are demanding his arrest.

“These medals are the country’s honours. These medals have not come by any act of kindness by BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. The sportspersons won it through their hard work,” Hooda said.

“The government has repeatedly insulted sportspersons and daughters. Similar behaviour was meted out to them during the inauguration of the new Parliament building. The sportspersons are going to immerse their medals in the Ganga in Haridwar. People are extremely sad about it. I would appeal to the sportspersons to not do this,” he said.

The protesting wrestlers, who were detained by the Delhi Police and removed from their Jantar Mantar protest site, on Tuesday said they will immerse their hard-earned medals into river Ganges and sit on a hunger strike “until death” at the India Gate.

Sakshi Malik, a bronze medallist at the 2016 Olympics, said in a statement on her Twitter handle that the wrestlers will go to Haridwar to immerse the medals into the holy river at 6 pm.

“These medals are our life and soul. We are going to immerse them in the Ganges. After that there is no point in living, so we will sit on a hunger strike until death at India Gate,” she said in the statement written in Hindi. The same statement was also shared by her compatriot Vinesh Phogat.

Tuesday is Ganga Dussehra in Haridwar and possibly a day when a lot of people will be there to offer prayers.

On Sunday, Delhi police detained Malik along with World Championships bronze winner Vinesh Phogat and another Olympic medallist Bajrang Punia and later filed FIRs against them for violation of law and order, as dramatic scenes unfolded at the protest site at Jantar Mantar.

Hooda also hit out at the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre, saying “Nine years, country in misery. The Modi government has disappointed the people of the country. It has not been able to fulfil its promises made to the country.”