Rename Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award after sports personality: Babita Phogat
Chandigarh: Indian wrestler Babita Phogat on Wednesday said the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award should be renamed after a prominent sports personality.
Sports-related awards should be named only after great and respected players and not after any political person, Phogat said in a tweet.
How do you like the suggestion of renaming Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award after a player, she asked in a tweet, as many Twitter users responded to one of her earlier tweets in this regard.
When asked by reporters to comment on the issue, she said, The Khel Ratna award has been named after Rajiv Gandhi. Instead, had it been named after any player, it would have been more appropriate.
There are so many Olympic and world champion medalists in our country and players too would have felt more proud and motivated in receiving the award if it was named after a prominent sports personality, she said.
The Khel Ratna, the country's highest sporting honour, is named after former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi.
A month ago, the Haryana government had appointed Babita Phogat as the deputy director in its Sports and Youth Affairs Department.
Babita Phogat is the daughter of Mahavir Phogat, a noted wrestling coach.
The Phogats became a household name in the country after the success of Hindi film "Dangal'', which is based on the lives of the Phogat sisters, all of them wrestlers, and their father who coached them against all odds.
Babita Phogat, along with her father, had joined the BJP in August last year.
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Putin in close contact with Gulf leaders to facilitate de-escalation: Kremlin
Moscow (PTI): Russian President Vladimir Putin is making all possible efforts to de-escalate the crisis in the Gulf and is in close contact with the regional leaders as Iran is retaliating with massive strikes on the US facilities and infrastructure on their territories, the Kremlin said on Tuesday.
The US and Israel launched joint strikes against Iran on Saturday, assassinating 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, alongside family members, including his daughter and grandchildren. Since then, Iran has targeted multiple US bases in the surrounding Gulf States.
"Putin will certainly make every effort to facilitate at least a minor easing of tensions. In this regard, we discussed with virtually all of our interlocutors yesterday," the Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
"Taking advantage of the dialogue we maintain with the Iranian leadership, (President) Putin will convey his deep concern regarding the strikes on their infrastructure to our colleagues in Iran," he added.
According to the Kremlin, Putin spoke by telephone with leaders of Bahrain, Qatar, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia.
In his telephonic conversation with Crown Prince and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, Putin discussed the escalating situation in the region as a result of the American-Israeli armed aggression against Iran.
“Both sides expressed serious concern over the real risks of escalation of the conflict, which has already affected several Arab countries and is fraught with catastrophic consequences. In this context, Vladimir Putin underscored the urgent need to resolve the current extremely dangerous situation through political and diplomatic means,” the Kremlin said.
On Monday, Putin also had telephonic contacts with the King of Bahrain, Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, who currently chairs the Gulf Cooperation Council, Emir of the State of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and President of the United Arab Emirates, Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
“Exchange of views was held regarding the unprecedented escalation around Iran as a result of US and Israeli aggression, which is bringing the entire region to the brink of a full-scale war with unpredictable consequences. Sides underscored the need for a swift cessation of hostilities to prevent the situation from spiralling completely out of control and to return it to a political and diplomatic framework,” the Kremlin said.
The current developments, in particular, threaten the security of many Arab states with which Russia maintains friendly relations.
Given this, President Putin reaffirmed Russia's readiness to use all available means to actively contribute to stabilising the situation in the region, the Kremlin said, adding that contacts with the Gulf leaders will continue.
