Para Shooting World Cup becomes uncertain after sports ministry suspends PCI
New Delhi, Feb 4: The hosting of the Para Shooting World Cup in India next month is in jeopardy following the sports ministry's decision to suspend the Paralympic Committee of India (PCI) for not holding elections on time.
The Para Shooting World Cup, to be held at the Karni Singh Ranges here from March 6-15, is the first-ever mega para shooting competition allotted to India and offers 24 Paris Paralympic quota places.
More than 500 pistol, rifle and shotgun shooters from 52 countries are expected to compete in the competition and aim to secure Paralympic quota places in the last tournament of the qualification cycle.
Several top Indian para shooters are also in the fray for Paralympic quota places.
However, following the ministry's decision on February 2, a cloud of uncertainty hangs over the prestigious event at a time when the PCI is in the final phase of confirming entries of competitors by name, arranging their visas, stay and putting in place a technical team for the conduct of the competition.
The ministry had on February 2 issued an order suspending the PCI's recognition for "intentional delay" by the national body "to elect a new executive committee" as per the National Sports Code.
The four-year term of the PCI ended on January 31 this year and, as per the ministry, the elections should have been held before the expiry of the term. The PCI has scheduled the election for March 28 this year.
PCI secretary-general Gursharan Singh told PTI on Sunday that the ministry had been informed that the elections were getting delayed only because of the impending Para World Cup.
"Yes, they have suspended the recognition of the PCI. How can they when no national sports federation (NSF) has received recognition for the current year.
"The ministry is saying that they suspended our recognition because we did not hold the elections on time. Our election was due on January 27 this year but because of the Para World Cup, which has been awarded to India for the first time, we had to postpone the elections.
"We announced the dates of the elections in March after the Para World Cup. The elections are on March 28 and the returning officer has also been appointed," said Singh.
"We informed the ministry about the election dates a week back, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) too has been informed. Suddenly this development (suspension of recognition) happened; I don't know why.
"We wrote to the ministry that the elections were being postponed only because of the Para World Cup... a ministry official is also in the Para World Cup organising committee," added Singh.
"We received the last date for entries by name for the competition only yesterday. This development will spoil the reputation of the country. We will have to organise the tournament come what may, otherwise the IPC will create problems for us," he said.
"Our body hasn't been suspended, our recognition has. We don't take any money from the government but the biggest hurdle is the sponsors, many of them Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs), who might not release payments following the developments."
Singh said the PCI has a budget of Rs 12 crore for the Para World Cup from which they were hoping for Rs 5 crore in sponsorship money.
"With the Paralympic Games later this year in Paris, this is not a welcome move. It's going to de-motivate the players."
The ministry has directed the Sports Authority of India (SAI) to co-ordinate with the IPC to form an ad-hoc committee comprising eminent administrators and sportspersons "to undertake these tasks performed by PCI" and "conduct free, fair and transparent elections".
"At least a notice should have been served before suspending our recognition," he added.
On whether there was a likelihood of the Para World Cup being taken away from India and being awarded to some other country, Singh replied in the negative.
"It is not possible at such a short notice", said Singh, though a source told PTI that South Korea is more than keen to host the event.
"The best part is the government has given the No-objection Certificate (NOC) for organising the Para World Cup. After all this, why has this spanner in the works.
"There is a provision in our bylaws and the National Sports Code that under special circumstances they can give approval (postpone elections)."
Sports Authority of India director-general Sandip Pradhan did not answer calls or messages.
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Jharkhand horror: Man kills live-in partner, chops body into 40 pieces
Ranchi (PTI): A 25-year-old man, who works as a butcher, allegedly strangled to death his live-in partner and chopped her body into 40 to 50 pieces in a forested area in Jharkhand’s Khunti district, police said on Wednesday.
The accused, identified as Naresh Bhengra, was arrested.
The matter came to light after around a fortnight after the killing when a stray dog was found with human body parts near Jordag village in Jariagarh police station on November 24.
Bhengra was in a live-in relationship with the deceased, a 24-year-old woman also from Khunti district, in Tamil Nadu for the past couple of years. Sometime back, he returned to Jharkhand, got married to another woman without telling his partner anything and went back to the southern state without his wife to join her.
"The brutal incident occurred on November 8 when they reached Khunti as the accused who had married another woman did not wish to take her home. Instead, he took her to a forest near his house at Jordag village in Jariagarh police station and chopped the body into pieces. The man has been arrested," Khunti Superintendent of Police Aman Kumar told PTI.
Inspector Ashok Singh who investigated the case said the man worked in a butcher shop in Tamil Nadu and was expert in slicing chicken.
“He admitted chopping the body parts of the woman into 40 to 50 pieces before leaving those in the forest for wild animals to feast on. The police recovered several parts on November 24 after a dog in the area was seen with a hand," Singh told PTI.
Singh said that the woman, who was unaware of his marriage, pressured him to return to Khunti. After reaching Ranchi, they boarded a train on November 24 and headed to the man's village.
"Under a plan, the man took her to Khunti in an autorickshaw near his home and asked her to wait. He returned with sharp weapons and strangulated her with her dupatta after raping her. He then cut the body into 40 to 50 pieces and left for his home to live with his wife," Singh said.
The woman, however, had informed her mother that she had boarded a train and would be living with her partner, the police officer said.
Following the recovery of body parts, a bag was also found in the forest with the murdered woman's belongings including her Aadhaar card. The mother of the woman was called at the spot and she identified her daughter's belongings.
"The mother suspected the man behind the crime who after being nabbed by the police admitted to chopping the woman into pieces," the official added.
The incident has sent shockwaves among people in the region, with the Shraddha Walker murder case of 2022 still fresh in their memory.
Walker was killed by her live-in partner who chopped her body into pieces before dumping them in the jungle in South Delhi’s Mehrauli.
