CWG champion Sanjita Chanu handed 4-year ban by NADA for failing dope test
New Delhi (PTI): Two-time Commonwealth Games champion Indian weightlifter Sanjita Chanu has been handed a four-year ban by the National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) for failing a dope test last year.
Sanjita had tested positive for an anabolic steroid -- Drostanolone Metabolite -- that features in the World Anti-doping Agency's (WADA) prohibited list, during the in-competition testing at the National Games in Gujarat in September-October last year.
Indian Weightlifting Federation (IWF) president Sahdev Yadav confirmed the development.
"Yes, she has been handed a four-year ban by NADA," he told PTI.
This a is a huge setback for Sanjita, who will be stripped of the National Games silver medal as a result of the positive test.
Sanjita could not be reached for her comment.
Sanjita had won gold in 48kg ahead of Mirabai Chanu at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. At the 2018 edition in Gold Coast, she was crowned champion in the 53kg category.
The Manipuri still has the option to appeal the decision. However, it is not sure if she will choose to do so.
"I have already experienced this, why will I dope again and go through this again? I don't know if I want to appeal or not. In both cases I will lose.
"If I appeal it will take time to clear my name and I will lose out on the chance to qualify for the Olympics and Asian Games. If I don't I will be suspended," she had told PTI in January.
It is not the first time that the 2011 Asian Championship bronze medallist finds herself embroiled in a dope controversy.
She had been banned by the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) in 2018 after she tested positive for anabolic steroid testosterone prior to the World Championships in the US in November 2017.
In 2020, the world body, however, dropped the doping charge against Sanjita due to "non-conformities" in the handling of her sample.
"I have been in this situation before. But I am not able to understand how this has happened. Since that incident, I have been very careful about my diet and everything. I check my supplements carefully and ask if they are free of all dope," she had said.
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Suvendu Adhikari says Bangladesh should be taught a “lesson like Israel taught Gaza”
Kolkata: Bharatiya Janata Party leader and Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly Suvendu Adhikari has sparked controversy after stating that Bangladesh should be taught a “lesson like Israel has taught Gaza.”
Adhikari made the remark while speaking to reporters outside the Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Kolkata on Friday, December 26. “These people must be taught a lesson, just like Israel taught Gaza. Our 100 crore Hindus and the government working in the interest of Hindus must teach them a lesson just as we taught Pakistan a lesson in Operation Sindoor,” he said.
The statement came amid protests being held outside the Bangladesh Deputy High Commission since December 22, following the lynching of Dipu Chandra Das, a 27-year-old garment factory worker in Bangladesh. Das was killed on December 18 in the Mymensingh district, where his body was allegedly hung from a tree and set on fire in public view.
Adhikari was part of a five-member delegation that met senior officials of the Bangladesh Deputy High Commission on Friday. Speaking after the meeting, he claimed that the diplomats had “no answer to most of his questions” related to the killing and the situation of minorities in Bangladesh.
Reacting to his comments, the All India Trinamool Congress accused the BJP of promoting hate and intolerance. In a post on X, the party described Adhikari’s remarks as hate speech and alleged that they amounted to a call for violence, while also questioning the absence of legal action against him.
Adhikari’s statement has added to political tensions in West Bengal and raised concerns over inflammatory rhetoric linked to sensitive international and communal issues.
The @BJP4India’s Bengal ‘face’ wants a Gaza like operation against Bangladesh. Dog whistles that the @narendramodi government is for ‘Hindus’ only. Do you concur with this @narendramodi @DrSJaishankar ? Dirty politics of Divide and Rule won’t work in Bengal, @SuvenduWB pic.twitter.com/vLWm9b3AXb
— Sagarika Ghose (@sagarikaghose) December 27, 2025
