Olympic Medallist Bajrang Punia Keeps Padma Shri On Parliament Pavement – WATCH VIRAL VIDEO

New Delhi: Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist Bajrang Punia placed the prestigious Padma Shri on the letter he had written to PM Narendra Modi and kept both on the pavement of the Parliament in protest against the election of Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh loyalist Sanjay Singh as the president of Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), the video of which went viral on social media.

On Thursday, Sanjay Singh was elected as the president of the WFI after the panel led by the close aide of Brij Bhushan won 13 of the 15 posts. The wrestlers had demanded that no close associate of Brij Bhushan should enter the WFI. Bajrang, who was conferred with the Padma Shri in 2019, wrote a letter to the PM and also posted it on social media.

The two-time Commonwealth Games gold medallist then went to meet PM Modi in Parliament but was stopped at Kartavya Path by the Delhi Police. “I had received this honour from the government but I feel despite this honour I could not protect the honour of the daughters of this country, so I do not deserve to keep this award,” Bajrang told reporters.

“The adminstration is right in saying that I have not taken prior permission to meet the PM, so I could not meet him. I have kept the Padma Shri here on top of the letter because I can not put it on the floor,” he said adding that he will not take it back home.

Asked what his message to the prime minister was, Bajrang said, “If the voice of women wrestlers has not yet reached you and if it reaches you in future please help them in getting justice.”

Earlier, Sakshi Malik, Bajrang and Vinesh Phogat had addressed media after Sanjay’s election in which Sakshi, a bronze medallist at the 2016 Rio Olympics, announced that she would quit the sport as a mark of protest. The three top wrestlers had accused Brij Bhushan of sexually exploiting several women wrestlers.

Meanwhile, the Sports Ministry said Bajrang’s decision to return the award is a personal one but it will still try to convince him to rethink the move. “It is Bajrang Punia’s personal decision to return Padma Shri. The WFI elections were held in fair and democratic manner,” a ministry official told PTI. “We will still try to persuade Bajrang to reverse his decision to return Padma Shri,” he added.