Imphal (PTI): Ace boxer Mary Kom's husband Onler Karong has sparked a controversy after he expressed dissatisfaction over the looks of a statue of his wife, which was recently erected at a park near here.
Nineteen statues of the state's Olympians, including that of Mary Kom, were recently installed at Manipur Olympic Park.
Onler Karong, in an interview with a local newspaper, claimed that the statue, which was erected at the Park, does not look like his wife, six times World Women's Boxing Champion and 2012 London Olympic bronze medalist.
Neither Onler Karong nor Mary Kom could be contacted despite repeated efforts.
However, while talking to PTI, Kom’s brother Jimmy Kom claimed that the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) assured him that the statue will be replaced before the inauguration of the park, the date of which is yet to be fixed.
When contacted, officials of the CMO told PTI that they will not speak about the issue. "It is his (Onler) personal opinion," Jimmy said.
Jimmy said his sister returned home from a tour and got to know about the development only on Wednesday, he said.
"There is a concern that Onler's statement might be misinterpreted as the statues were installed to honour our state's athletes," Jimmy said.
Two days back, before the matter came to the fore, Chief Minister N Biren Singh had on his official Facebook page said that the Park "is all set for inauguration. Everyone can now witness the statues of our legendary Olympians, the pride of our Nation."
"The Manipur Olympian Park was constructed in honour of our Olympians from Manipur who have brought laurels for the Nation. Not only will this place become a major tourist attraction but also inspire the youths to achieve greater heights in life," Singh had said in a separate post.
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Annamalai withdraws from race for BJP Tamil Nadu President’s post, wishes well for successor
Coimbatore: BJP Tamil Nadu President K Annamalai announced on Friday that he was not in the race for the post of the state chief of the party, adding that he had no intention of retaining his position as state president.
Addressing reporters here, Annamalai said that he was withdrawing in the best interests of the party, firmly refusing to comment on political speculation. He also wished well for his successor to the top post of the party in Tamil Nadu.
He stated that several members had contributed to the growth of the party and that the BJP was a party where an election and not competition was held any post in the party.
