Das-Ankita fight back to oust Malaysia; Indian archers make quarters in four events
Hangzhou (PTI): The Indian recurve mixed pair archery duo of Atanu Das and Ankita Bhakat showed tenacity to defeat Malayasia in a three-setter and sail into quarterfinals at the Asian Games here on Monday.
Indian archers stormed into last-eight in three team events -- recurve mixed, compound mixed, compound men's team -- when the elimination round got underway at the Fuyang Yinhu Sports Centre here.
As of now, India are in medal contention in four events with the top-seeded women's team compound archers getting a bye into the quarters.
Fifth seeded Indian duo of Das and Ankita rallied to beat Malaysian team of Syaqiera Binti Mashayikh, Muhamad Zarif Syahir Bin Zolkepeli 6-2 (39-38, 37-36, 39-33).
The Malaysia duo enjoyed a 2-0 lead with three 10s including one X in the first set.
But the experienced Indian duo bounced back with two 10s and went on to level as the Malaysians crumbled under pressure.
The Malaysians hit the red-ring (8) once and went on to lose the second by a slender one-point margin.
There was more misery in store for the Malaysians who shot into the red ring thrice (8-8-8), while Das-Ankita drilled in three perfect 10s en route to a six-point win in the third set.
The Indian pair sealed the issue with three more 10s in the fourth set and set up a last-eight clash against fourth-seeded Indonesians.
Should they overcome the Indonesian challenge, the Indians may run into the top-seeded Koreans in potential semifinal clash in Olympic-qualifying event.
There are six quota spots available from the Asian Games -- to the recurve mixed team winner, as well as another two archers ranked highly in the individual events.
In the compound mixed team, top-seeded Indian duo of Ojas Deotale and Jyothi Surekha Vennam dropped just one point from 16 arrows to eliminate UAE's Amna Alawadhi and Mohammed Binamro 159-151.
The duo will take on formidable Malaysia (No 8 seed) in the quarters and thereafter they have an easy draw till the final.
In compound men's team event, second-seeded Indians trio of Ojas, Abhishek Verma and Prathamesh Jawkar thrashed 15th seed Singapore (Woon Teng NG, Lee Chung Hee Alan, Jun Hui Goh) 235-219.
The Indian triumvirate had a cautious start and had four 10s to take 58-55 lead.
But the Indians came on their own from second end onwards and dropped just three points to rout their rivals by a 16-point margin.
The compound men's team is now pitted against lower-ranked Bhutan in the quarters and will have a potential semifinal clash against third seeded Chinese Taipei.
The top-seeded Indian women's compound team of Jyothi, Aditi Swami and Parneet Kaur, who got a bye into the quarters, will open its campaign against ninth-seeded Hong Kong who ousted Bangladesh 225-218.
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UP Cong holds statewide protest seeking probe into FIR against Swami Avimukteshwaranand
Lucknow (PTI): The Uttar Pradesh Congress on Wednesday staged a statewide protest demanding a fair and transparent inquiry into the FIR lodged against Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati and those who filed the complaint against him.
In a statement issued here, the party said memorandums addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi were submitted through district magistrates in all districts of the state.
Uttar Pradesh Congress spokesperson Manish Hindvi told PTI that the memorandums were handed over through the district administration in all 75 districts.
In the memorandum, the party alleged that Saraswati and his disciples were "unnecessarily harassed and humiliated" by police on the occasion of Amavasya and were prevented from taking a ritual bath (at the Magh Mela). It further alleged that some disciples were manhandled and taken to a police station.
The memorandum also claimed that an FIR was later registered against Saraswati, his disciple Swami Mukundanand Brahmachari and several unidentified persons in a sexual harassment case. It termed the case a "conspiracy" aimed at tarnishing the seer's reputation.
Citing Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution, the memorandum stated that these provisions guarantee religious freedom and the right of religious denominations to manage their own affairs.
It described the position of shankaracharya held by Saraswati as "one of the highest spiritual posts in Sanatan tradition" and alleged that the entire episode appeared to have been "orchestrated in a planned manner".
"We request that the background of the persons who got the FIR registered be investigated in a transparent manner by a retired high court judge and strict action be taken against them," the memorandum said.
It also sought a "fair and transparent probe" into the allegations levelled against Saraswati so that the truth could be established.
Earlier, Uttar Pradesh Congress president Ajay Rai had told reporters in Varanasi after meeting Saraswati that the party stood firmly with him.
The Congress said it would continue to press for an impartial inquiry into the entire episode.
On February 21, an FIR was lodged in Prayagraj against Saraswati and his disciple Mukundanand Brahmachari on charges of sexually abusing two persons, including a minor, over the past year at a gurukul and religious congregations, including the recently concluded Magh Mela.
Days after he was booked, Saraswati had said on Monday that he would not oppose his arrest and asserted that the "fabricated story" would be exposed sooner or later.
At a press conference on Wednesday, Saraswati alleged that criminals rule in Uttar Pradesh, level allegations and influence investigations, as he denied having any contact with the two persons for whose alleged sexual abuse he has been booked.
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