I have taken retirement from wrestling, says ex-WFI chief Brij Bhushan after ministry suspends WFI
New Delhi, Dec 24: Former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh on Sunday said he has "taken retirement" from the sport and the newly-elected body will now take charge as he has many more responsibilities to look into, including next year's Lok Sabha elections.
Brij Bhushan's comments came soon after his meeting with BJP chief JP Nadda following WFI's suspension by the Sports Ministry till further orders.
In suspending the newly elected WFI, the government cited its "hasty announcement" of organising the U-15 and U-20 nationals "without following due procedure and not giving sufficient notice to wrestlers" for preparations.
The ministry also said the new body was working under "complete control of former (WFI) office-bearers" -- an indirect reference to Brij Bhushan -- which was not in conformity with the National Sports Code.
The WFI elections were held on December 21 with Brij Bhushan's loyalist, Sanjay Singh, and his panel winning the polls by big margins.
"I served wrestling for 12 years, good or bad only time will tell. I have taken retirement from wrestling. I am breaking my relationship with the sport. Now whatever decision has to be taken, whether to liaise with he government or handling the legal processes, those decisions will be taken by the elected members now. The Lok Sabha elections are round the corner and I have to move ahead," he said.
Brij Bhushan clarified that the decision to hold the U15 and U20 Nationals was taken in haste because he did not want the young players to lose one precious year of their careers.
"In haste, the old committee had to take the decision to organise the U15 and U20 Nationals because on December 31 the competition cycle (of year 2023) was ending and if those tournaments happen after that, one full year of the wrestlers would have gone waste," said Brij Bhushan.
"That's why all the state associations collectively decided that a sporting atmosphere needs to be brought back as soon as possible."
The decision to host the U15 and U20 Nationals in Nandini Nagar in Gonda has also drawn criticism from wrestlers including Olympic medallist Sakshi Malik, who have claimed young women were wary of going there.
Brij Bhushan said the Nationals were allotted to Nandini Nagar because all state associations declined to host them because of paucity of time to make arrangements at such a short notice.
"The championship was allotted to Nandini Nagar because every state association said they cannot organise it in just 4-5 days. The decision to hold the U15 and U20 Nationals was taken by consensus of all 25 state associations so that children don't lose one year. All 25 state associations gave their consent in writing to hold them in Nandini Nagar.
"I will request the government and the sports ministry to please organise the tournaments under their supervision if they want in Delhi or whichever place they want so that children don't lose a year," he added.
Brij Bhushan is a sitting BJP MP from Kaiserganj in Uttar Pradesh.
On meeting BJP chief JP Nadda on an eventful day, the former WFI chief said there was no discussion with regard to the suspension of the newly-formed body.
"Look, he is my leader. I will meet him, keep meeting him. But it had got nothing to do with this (wrestling issue)," said Brij Bhushan, whose WFI was replaced by an IOA-constituted ad-hoc committee on orders from the ministry after top wrestlers Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat and Sakshi Malik levelled allegations of sexual harassment against him.
Bajrang had returned his Padma Shri award to the government on Friday in protest over Sanjay Singh's election as WFI chief. On Thursday, Sakshi Malik quit wrestling for the same reason.
Brij Bhushan questioned why wrestlers were against the new WFI president Sanjay Singh. "He is not my relative," he said.
One of the reasons cited by the ministry for suspending the Sanjay Singh-led WFI was that the new body had started functioning in the same premises (Brij Bhushan's official bungalow) from where the previous office-bearers operated wherein allegedly sexual harassment of the players have been alleged.
"I will tell the new office-bearers to take their office to a new place. When they have made that provision, they can move out," said Brij Bhushan.
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Putin meets Iran's FM Araghchi, says Russia ready to do its best to help bring peace to West Asia
Moscow (PTI): Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Monday met Russian President Vladimir Putin, who hailed the Iranian people for fighting bravely and heroically for their sovereignty and said Moscow is ready to do its best to help bring peace to West Asia as soon as possible.
Araghchi, who held talks with Omani and Pakistani leadership before arriving in Russia, met Putin in St. Petersburg and thanked him for supporting Iran, state-owned TASS news agency reported.
"Russia is ready to do everything in its power to ensure that peace in the Middle East is achieved as soon as possible," Putin said during his meeting with Araghchi, which was also attended by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Revealing that he received a message from Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei last week, Putin asked Araghchi to convey his "gratitude for this message and best wishes for his health and well-being."
He praised the Iranian people for fighting "bravely and heroically" for their sovereignty, Iran's state-run PRESS TV reported.
"We really hope that, based on the courage and desire for independence, the Iranian people, under the guidance of the new leader, will weather this difficult period of trials and peace will come,” Putin said.
He also stressed that Russia “intends to maintain” its strategic relations with Iran.
Araghchi said that the world witnessed Iran’s strength in countering the US during the recent war, and that the Islamic Republic is a "stable and powerful establishment."
"With their courage, the Iranian people succeeded in resisting the US aggression and will be able to endure it,” he said.
He said that it became clear that Iran has “great friends and allies” like Russia, and conveyed “warmest greetings” from Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian to the Russian leader.
Araghchi said relations between Moscow and Tehran represent a “strategic partnership at the highest level” and will continue to develop "regardless of circumstances."
"We are grateful to you for the solid and strong positions in support of the Islamic Republic of Iran," he said.
Foreign Minister Lavrov said that the talks between President Putin and the Iranian Foreign Minister were "useful and constructive."
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov later said that Russia is "ready to provide any good offices, any mediation services that are acceptable to the parties."
"We will be ready to do everything so that ultimately peace ensues, guaranteed peace, and that there is no return to hostilities," Peskov was quoted as saying by TASS.
He was asked how Moscow can assist in future negotiations on the Iranian settlement.
Araghchi arrived in Russia after his whirlwind trip to Islamabad, which, according to him, was “very productive” and involved “good consultations" with Pakistan's Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, amid uncertainty over the second round of peace talks to resolve the war in West Asia.
"We held good consultations with our friends in Pakistan. The trip was successful. We assessed the outcome of our recent (meetings) and discussed in what direction and under what conditions talks can move on,” Araghchi said in a video posted on his Telegram channel upon his arrival in St Petersburg.
Referring to the second round of talks between the US and Iran to resolve the conflict in West Asia, Araghchi said: "Developments have taken place in the negotiations."
"Despite some progress in earlier rounds, the talks failed to reach their objectives due to the Americans' approach, the excessive demands they made, and the wrong approaches they adopted. Therefore, it was necessary to consult with our friends in Pakistan to review the latest situation,” Iran's official news agency IRNA quoted him as saying.
He said that the trip to Pakistan was a good opportunity to review developments related to the US-Israeli war against Iran, expressing confidence that “these consultations and coordination between the two countries will be highly significant.”
Araghchi arrived at St. Petersburg's Pulkovo Airport early Monday, where he was welcomed by Russian officials and Iran’s ambassador to Russia, Kazem Jalali, the report said.
The first round of peace talks between Iran and the US, held on April 11 and 12, failed to bring the desired result for the parties to the conflict.
The Iranian minister arrived in Islamabad for the second time on Sunday after a short visit to Oman, where he held talks with Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said on security in the Strait of Hormuz and diplomatic efforts to end the Iran-US conflict.
After Araghchi left Pakistan for Oman on Saturday, President Donald Trump announced that US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would no longer be going to Islamabad for talks with Iran, contending that Washington held all the cards on the matter.
Trump on Sunday reiterated that the US and Iranian officials can talk by phone for a peace solution to the conflict.
On Tuesday, Trump extended the two-week ceasefire with Iran indefinitely to give Tehran more time to prepare a unified proposal to end the war, just hours before the truce was set to expire.
The war began when the US and Israel jointly attacked Iran on February 28, killing Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several top commanders. The retaliation by the Islamic Republic extended the war to the entire Gulf region.
