In a dramatic turn of events, Sanjay Singh, a close aide of former WFI president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, emerged victorious in the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) elections.
Brij Bhushan expressed that this triumph is not just his, but a victory for wrestlers nationwide, signaling the end of an 11-month hiatus in wrestling activities.
Despite the celebratory mood, wrestler Sakshi Malik voiced concerns about the absence of female representation in leadership positions and emphasised the ongoing fight for equality.
Sanjay Singh, the newly elected president, pledged to organise national camps and focus on wrestling, separating it from politics within the federation.
"A message has been given. Every akhaada in the country is bursting firecrackers. Dabdabaa tha, dabdabba rahega! I want to give the credit of victory to the wrestlers of the country and the electors. I want to thank the government as well. The elections were done on instructions of the Supreme Court and the Centre had submitted the PIL for this. Elections were held by the Punjab and Haryana High Court, and the Centre went ahead to make sure elections happened, and a non-partisan person was chosen as president. This grahan of 11 months on wrestling is over. Within 10 days, the landscape of wrestling will change again, and we will perform in the Olympics the way people want us to," concluded Brij Bhushan.
Responding to the election of Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh's aide Sanjay Singh as the new president of WFI, wrestler Sakshi Malik remarked, "We have made demands for a woman president. If the president would be a woman, harassment would not happen. But there was no participation of women earlier, and today you can see the list; not even a single woman was given a position. We had fought with complete strength, but this fight will continue. The wrestlers of the new generation have to fight."
Sanjay Singh, elected as the new president of the Wrestling Federation of India, shared his vision, stating, "National Camps (for wrestling) will be organised. Wrestlers who want to do politics can do politics; those who want to do wrestling will do wrestling."
The Wrestling Federation of India elections, held on December 21 after several postponements, witnessed Sanjay Singh's panel securing victory with 40 votes, while the opposing panel received 7 votes.
