— “In 2019, I used to be instructed I’d be given Rs 1 lakh monthly from the cash they won from (sponsorship handle) Tata. After that, I were given a cheque of Rs 5.5 lakh and later, in 2021, Rs 4.5 lakh. I won roughly Rs 10 lakh,” Ravi Dahiya, Tokyo Olympics silver medallist.
— “I used to be in Grade B and was once entitled to Rs 25 lakh consistent with 12 months as consistent with the contract. Thus far, I’ve won 2 cheques totalling to Rs 5.25 roughly,” Pooja Dhanda, 2018 International Championship bronze medallist.
— “I used to be promised Rs 1 lakh monthly however I simply won Rs 6 lakh lump sum and was once instructed I’d get the remainder of the cash later,” Deepak Punia, 2019 International Championship silver medallist.
Those are testimonies of one of the most wrestlers who deposed sooner than the government-appointed Oversight Committee, whose complete file is discussed within the Delhi Police chargesheet.
The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) had introduced annual central contracts for Indian wrestlers in 2018. In the similar 12 months Tata Motors got here on board because the predominant sponsor of the WFI.
Just like the trio, each wrestler who gave the impression for the hearings identified the false guarantees made via the Wrestling Federation of India, unpaid dues and non-existent contracts, with considered one of them telling the committee she puzzled the place the ‘sponsorship cash promised to them went’.
But, as they did with the sexual harassment allegations, the MC Mary Kom-led panel didn’t elevate a crimson flag or counsel an investigation or audit from competent government.
As an alternative, it simply advised that the WFI ‘use products and services of professionals in contract control’, known as for ‘transparent conversation’ with stakeholders and prompt them to ‘deal with right kind data of any contract which they have got entered’.
When the govt appointed the Oversight Committee in January, it additionally tasked the contributors to appear into the allegations of monetary mismanagement made via the wrestlers aside from the sexual harassment claims.
In its abstract titled ‘Breach of Gamers Contract’, the panel famous: “Quite a lot of gamers right through their deposition introduced out that they’d a freelance with Tata Motors, who’re identify sponsors of the WFI, by which they had been promised that each participant can be supplied sponsorship cash in line with a definite grading formulated via WFI.”
In the course of the examinations of ‘quite a lot of paperwork supplied via the WFI’, it emerged that there was once ‘no such provision made within the contract’.
Alternatively, after the athletes had demanded they must be paid from the sponsorship quantity in the event that they had been to put on singlets bearing the sponsor’s emblem, a recent contract was once drafted via the federation’s industrial companions.
Brij Bhushan mentioned the announcement of paid contracts for gamers was once made in ‘pleasure’ of having a brand new sponsor on board, which by no means materialised.
Right through his deposition, the WFI’s assistant secretary Vinod Tomar, a co-accused within the sexual harassment case, mentioned they signed a freelance with ‘Vinesh, Bajrang and Sakshi’. Tomar mentioned there have been two different athletes who signed the contract however he ‘couldn’t have in mind their names.’ When the committee requested for a replica of the contract neither Tomar nor the athletes had been in ownership of it.
In keeping with Tomar, Bajrang’s annual contract was once value Rs 30 lakh, Vinesh, he mentioned, was once both ’Rs 20 or 25 lakh’ and Sakshi’s contract was once valued at Rs 20 lakh.
When a legal professional co-opted into the committee requested concerning the procedure to make a decision which participant would get a freelance and its value, Tomar answered: “(Former) President (Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh), Secretary (VN Prasood), and so on met and made up our minds that gamers who’re getting ready for the Olympics would get Rs 30 lakh, Rs 25 lakh for International Championship medallist…”
Alternatively, the athletes mentioned they didn’t obtain the promised sum.
International Championship silver medallist Anshu Malik instructed the committee: “In February 2021, I learn a observation (via the federation) in a newspaper that I in conjunction with Sonam (Malik) was once upgraded to A class even though we didn’t obtain anything else in Grade B… I had won one cheque of Rs 2.5 lakh however didn’t know for which class contract it was once. We weren’t requested to signal any contract however had been instructed we’d get Rs 2.5 lakh each 3 months. Later, I won one (installment of) Rs 2.5 lakh on June 8 however not anything up to now after that.”
Rio Olympics bronze medallist Sakshi Malik mentioned she was once ‘at a loss for words up to now’ whether or not she featured in Grade A or B. “I feel I won an installment of Rs five or six lakh. The place the remainder of the cash went I have no idea. I used to name the federation and so they put it at the sponsors whilst the sponsors blamed the federation,” Sakshi instructed the committee.
International Championship medallist Vinesh Phogat mentioned she was once promised a freelance value Rs 25 lakh however were given paid Rs 11-11.50 lakh in two installments.
Former International Championship bronze medallist and ex-Asian champion Sarita Mor mentioned the federation claimed they’d despatched 3 installments however she won only one, amounting to Rs 67,000.
Bajrang, whose contract was once value Rs 30 lakh, was once given Rs 22 lakh, in step with Tomar. Bajrang contested the declare, pronouncing he didn’t obtain the mentioned quantity. When the committee countered Tomar, asking him why the promised Rs 30 lakh was once now not paid to Bajrang, he blamed it at the sponsors’ calls for.
