Indian chess player picked for random security check in Germany
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Indian Grandmaster SL Narayanan was chosen for a random security check during a Bundesliga chess league match in Germany. He was left to stand barefoot for a metal detector check. He wrote on Twitter that the experience was humiliating for him.
He took to the social media platform to detail the experience.
"Today, I felt humiliated. And if I prefer to remain silent about it, I will not be doing justice to myself and other sports persons who go through similar experiences. I played in the Bundesliga today. Before the first round, I was one of the five players picked by the arbiter for a random check. During the check with a metal detector, there was a beep sound. So, I was told to remove my shoes and they checked again. Beep. Now, I was told to remove my socks. The arbiter then ran the metal detector on my naked foot and then we heard the beep again."
"At this point, I was told to move aside and the next player was asked to step forward. It is hard to explain how bad it felt as if I was guilty of something I had no clue whatsoever. All this happened in the middle of the playing hall. I held a sock and stood with bare left food. Imagine how I might have felt," he added.
He further said the arbiter later realised it was the carpeted floor triggering the beep sound and not any human. The official apologised to Narayanan but the experience was "embarrassing". The incident took place right before it was his turn to play.
"The fact that the arbiter apologised is appreciated. But the whole situation could have been handled better. The arbiters should probably start checking the floor first and maybe start asking players if they had any surgery before asking them to remove the shoes and socks," he added.
While some users on Twitter supported the grandmaster's sentiments, others called it an "overreaction" and asked him to "chill" because even Indian diplomats have been strip-searched in the West. Some also called the incident an "honest misunderstanding" and the chess player should not feel humiliated as the official apologised.
Security checks used to happen earlier as well but they have become stricter after world champion Magnus Carlsen accused American GM Hans Niemann of cheating. India's woman Grandmaster Priyanka Nutakki was expelled from the World Junior Chess Championship in Italy for carrying a pair of earbuds inside her jacket pocket.