One of the most celebrated Indian Paralympians of all time, Devendra Jhajharia has been elected as the new president of the Paralympic Committee of India (PCI).
Jhajharia's appointment comes a few days after the news that he will be contesting on a BJP (Bhartiya Janta Party) ticket in the Lok Sabha elections from his hometown Churu (Rajasthan).
Jhajharia announced his retirement on the day the Sports Ministry of India decided to lift the suspension of the Paralympics Committee of India.
Notably, the ministry was forced to suspend the committee after it failed to conduct elections on time. Former Paralympian, Deepa Malik was the previous president of the committee. She had taken charge of the organisation in 2020.
The outgoing president had expressed delight at the Sports Ministry's decision to revoke the suspension.
"It is a joyous occasion for the Paralympic Committee as the suspension has been revoked. I would like to thank the Ministry of Sports, the minister of sports, respected Secretary Sujata, Sports Authority of India and government senior officials who gave us good guidance. The confusion regarding the delay of elections has been rectified," Deepa said in an official video by PCI.
Malik also thanked the ever-present support of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for "giving infrastructure, funding, and job opportunities" to the differently abled athletes in India.
"The elections will be held soon and the happiest moment is that we will be conducting a World Para Shooting World Cup on March 8. So, for the active federation with the support of the government, it will be a moment of national pride for our country. 50 countries with almost 500 athletes will be participating in the event. The vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for Divyangjan Sashaktikara, or giving infrastructure, funding, job opportunities and support to athletes," she added.
