The ad-hoc panel governing the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) has announced that the senior national wrestling championships will be organised from February 2 to 5 in Rajasthan's capital city, Jaipur.
The senior national wrestling championships will witness wrestlers compete with each other for top honours in the Greco-Roman, Free Style and women's category. The information was conveyed by a press release issued by the IOA-appointed (Indian Olympic Association) and the newly formed ad-hoc panel led by the WUSHU Association of India President Bhupendra Singh Bajwa.
The Railway Sports Promotion Board (RSPB) will organise and manage the championships at the Railway Stadium in Ganpati Nagar. The ad-hoc panel has also specified that none of the stakeholders should be in touch with any of the members of the suspended WFI.
For the unversed, the Sports Ministry of India suspended the newly elected Sanjay Singh-led WFI after it was found in violation of its own constitution.
Sanjay Singh's administrative body made a hasty announcement to hold U15 and U20 nationals in Nandini Nagar, Gonda, Uttar Pradesh from December 28-30 and copped the brunt of it.
It also appeared to the Sports Ministry that the Sanjay Singh-led body was running "in complete control of former office bearers in complete disregard to the Sports Code".
Therefore, the Sports Ministry requested the IOA to manage the operations of the WFI and the latter formed an ad-hoc panel of three members. The panel is led by the WUSHU Association of India President Bhupendra Singh Bajwa and has two more members in MM Somaya, a 1980 Olympic gold medallist hockey player and Manjusha Kanwar, a 1998 Commonwealth Games badminton medallist.
Notably, the WFI remains suspended by the apex wrestling governing body - United World Wrestling (UWW). The suspension was announced in August for a delay in elections.
