1983 Cricket World Cup winners urge wrestlers to refrain from taking extreme step

New Delhi: Members of the 1983 World Cup-winning cricket team have expressed their concerns over the possibility of protesting wrestlers taking the extreme step of immersing their hard-earned medals into the holy river Ganga.

In a statement released on Friday, the cricketing legends urged the elite athletes to avoid making hasty decisions and instead hoped that their grievances would be acknowledged and resolved through appropriate channels.

Prominent wrestlers Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik, and Bajrang Punia have been actively demanding the arrest of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, on allegations of sexual exploitation of women wrestlers.

To amplify their protest, they travelled to Haridwar on May 30. However, despite their initial threat, the wrestlers did not carry out the action of immersing their medals in the sacred waters of the Ganga.

The members of the 1983 cricket team, who achieved glory on the global stage, empathized with the wrestlers and emphasized the importance of patience and dialogue in resolving the ongoing issues. They expressed hope that the concerns raised by Phogat, Malik, Punia, and others would be addressed and resolved in a fair and just manner, ensuring the welfare and dignity of all athletes involved.

The wrestlers' demand for justice against the alleged sexual exploitation within the wrestling fraternity has garnered significant attention within the sporting community and beyond. It remains to be seen how the Wrestling Federation of India and relevant authorities respond to these serious allegations, and whether the concerns of the protesting athletes will be effectively addressed in the coming days.

On May 28, the Delhi Police had detained the wrestlers for violation of law and order when they marched towards the new Parliament building without permission.

The Police also cleared the protest site and made it clear that the wrestlers will not be allowed back at Jantar Mantar. The police action against the wrestlers had invited criticism from different quarters.

“We are distressed and disturbed at the unseemly visuals of our champion wrestlers being manhandled. We are also most concerned that they are thinking of dumping their hard-earned medals into river Ganga,” a statement released to PTI by the 1983 World Cup winning team read.

“Those medals have involved years of effort, sacrifice, determination, and grit and are not only their own but the nation’s pride and joy. We urge them not to take any hasty decision in this matter and also fervently hope that their grievances are heard and resolved quickly. Let the law of the land prevail,” the statement read further.

Under legendary skipper Kapil Dev, the Indian cricket team had humbled the mighty Clive Lloyd-led West Indies to win the country’s first World Cup trophy.

Sunil Gavaskar, Mohinder Amarnath, K Srikanth, Syed Kirmani, Yashpal Sharma, Madan Lal, Balwinder Singh Sandhu, Sandeep Patil, Kirti Azad and Roger Binny had featured in the memorable final, played at the Lord’s on June 25, 1983.

With inputs from PTI