“Will not take it back home”: Bajrang Punia leaves Padma Shri on Kartavya Path pavement; police keep it

Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik were part of protest by wrestlers against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh over sexual harassment allegations against him.

New Delhi: India’s ace wrestler Bajrang Punia, who on Friday announced that he is returning his Padma Shri after former WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh’s aide was elected president of the federation, said he will not take the medal back home and placed it on the pavement near Kartavya Path in central Delhi.

The Olympic medallist had earlier in the day posted on X that he will return Padma Shri as a mark of protest. His announcement came a day after Sakshi Malik broke down at a press conference and announced that she was quitting wrestling.

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Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik were part of protest by wrestlers against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh over sexual harassment allegations against him.

“As I have said earlier we were fighting for our daughters and sisters. I could not get justice for them. Due to this, I think I do not deserve this honour. I came here to return my award, However, I could not meet with PM because I didn’t have an appointment. PM has a busy schedule. So I am putting my award on the letter written to PM. I will not take this medal to my home,” Bajrang Punia told reporters.

The police personnel picked up both the letter and the Padma Shri medal.

Punia expressed his disappointment and alleged that the government failed to keep their promise to wrestlers made during the protest.

“We are not fighting against the government. The government failed to fulfil their promises and statements. We have already stated that Brij Bhushan is a powerful man and people who work under him are everywhere.” Bajrang Punia earlier wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying that he is returning his Padma Shri as a mark of protest over the results of the WFI elections where Sanjay Singh, an aide of former WFI president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, was elected as the president .

“I am returning my Padma Shri award to the Prime Minister. All I have to say is in this letter; this is my statement,” he said in post on X Sakshi Malik, who was one of the faces of wrestlers’ protest against former WFI president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh over sexual harassment allegations, on Thursday announced that she is quitting wrestling after Brij Bhushan’s aide Sanjay Singh was elected as the new president of the federation.

Sakshi, distraught and emotional, broke down as she left the venue after addressing a press conference in the national capital after announcing her retirement.