Wrestling federation may be suspended if elections are not held – UWW

Lausanne Condemning the detention of India’s leading wrestlers during a protest march on May 28, world wrestling’s governing body United World Wrestling (UWW) on Tuesday warned that if the matches are not scheduled after the scheduled time, He can suspend it if the pending elections of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) are not held internally.

In a strongly worded statement, the UWW said it was watching with “great concern” the situation relating to the wrestlers’ protest over abuse of power and sexual harassment by WFI president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.

“Even more worrying are the events of these last days that wrestlers were arrested and temporarily detained by the police for starting a protest march,” the statement said. UWW strongly condemns the ill-treatment and arrest of wrestlers. He expresses dismay at the lack of results of the investigation so far. UWW urges the concerned authorities to conduct a thorough and impartial investigation into the allegations.

The governing body said it would meet with the wrestlers ‘to inquire about their status and safety and to reaffirm our support for a fair and just resolution of their concerns’.

It is noteworthy that UWW had earlier this year shifted the Asian Championship from Delhi to Astana due to this controversy. The governing body said it would seek information from the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and the Wrestling Federation’s ad-hoc committee regarding the WFI elections.

The statement said, “The time limit of 45 days that was initially set for holding this election meeting will be respected. Failure to do so could result in the UWW suspending the federation, forcing the athletes to compete under a neutral flag (in international events).