New Delhi: The wrestlers have announced suspension of protest till June 15 after meeting with Sports Minister Anurag Thakur who assured them to finish the investigation against Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh by June 15.
The minister appealed to the grapplers to suspend their protests till the completion of inquiry.
Thakur had called a crucial meeting of the top wrestlers, who have been demanding the arrest of Brij Bhushan, at his residence to break the deadlock. The minister presented a written proposal to the protesters, which included completion of investigation by June 15 and an independent election to the Wrestling Federation by June 30.
The proposal, however, has no mention of the arrest of Brij Bhushan, who is also a BJP MP.
“We had a discussion on some issues. Police investigation should be completed by 15th June and the minister has requested us not to hold protests until then. He also said that the security of female wrestlers will be taken care of,” wrestler Bajrang Puina told reporters as he left Thakur’s residence after the 5-hour-long meeting.
Puina said the government has agreed to withdraw the cases filed against wrestlers on May 28 and to form an Internal Complaints Committee for the WFI.
“We have suspended protest only till June 15, the movement is not over yet,” he said.
Rio Olympic bronze medallist Sakshi Malik and her wrestler husband Satyawart Kadiyan were present at the meeting. Vinesh Phogat, a prominent face of the protest, couldn’t attend as she is in her village Balali in Haryana to attend a pre-scheduled ‘panchayat’.
The wrestlers had met Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday night and apprised him of their demands
