Rahul Gandhi meets Bajrang Punia in Haryana village after Sanjay Singh row

After Gandhi left, Punia told reporters that the Congress leader saw the daily routine of wrestlers at the Akhara and interacted with them. Asked if the WFI issue also figured during the meeting with Gandhi, another grappler said they told the Congress leader that wrestlers have been through a lot of mental stress.

Chandigarh:Amid the controversy over the appointment of Sanjay Singh, a close relative of ex-head of the apex wrestling body and BJP MP Brijbhushan Sharan Singh, as the chief of Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday met wrestler Bajrang Punia and some other wrestlers at Chhara village in Jhajjar district of Haryana. He met them at Virendra Arya Akhara. Rahul Gandhi was accorded a traditional welcome by wrestlers who gave them fresh radish instead of bouquets.

Rahul Gandhi, who spent several hours with the wrestlers also practised wrestling with wrestler Bajrang Punia. Gandhi wanted to inquire about daily routine of the wrestlers. Chhara is the native village of Haryana wrestler Deepak Punia. Both Deepak and Bajrang Punia started wrestling from Virendra Akhara. He later interacted with the wrestlers including Punia. Gandhi was at the akhara for a couple of hours. The former Congress president's meeting with the wrestlers comes amid the controversy surrounding the WFI.

After Gandhi left, Punia told reporters that the Congress leader saw the daily routine of wrestlers at the Akhara and interacted with them. Asked if the WFI issue also figured during the meeting with Gandhi, another grappler said they told the Congress leader that wrestlers have been through a lot of mental stress.

To a question, he described Gandhi's visit as 'impromptu' and said the wrestlers at the 'akhara' were not aware about it. "He reached the Akhara at 6.15 am. He asked us about our daily routine, saw how we do our exercises and he too did some exercises.

"We were happy that he has a lot of knowledge about wrestling and also knows some techniques," the wrestler told reporters. He said Gandhi also had milk, "Bajre Ki Roti" and "saag" with them. Gandhi was also offered some locally grown vegetables which he took along with him.

Vinesh Phogat, a two-time World Championship medal winner, on Tuesday decided to return her Khel Ratna and Arjuna award to the Prime Minister, saying such honours have become meaningless when wrestlers are struggling badly for justice.

Phogat's decision comes days after Olympic medallist Punia and Deaflympics champion Virender Singh Yadav returned their Padma Shri awards and Rio Games bronze medallist Sakshi Malik quit the sport after Sanjay Singh's election as WFI president on December 21.

Sanjay Singh is an associate of Brij Bhushan Singh Sharan and the wrestlers did not want any one close to the BJP MP entering the WFI. The Sports Ministry had suspended the newly-elected WFI and asked IOA to constitute an ad-hoc panel to manage the affairs of the sports body.

Brij Bhushan was accused of sexual harassment by Phogat, Punia and Malik. They had held a long drawn protest at Jantar Mantar early this year. The matter is being heard in a Delhi court.

Earlier in July, Gandhi had made an impromptu visit to Haryana's Sonipat district and interacted with people and spent time with farmers working agricultural lands.

He had also taken part in paddy sowing. In May, Gandhi had travelled in a truck from Delhi to Chandigarh to listen to the problems faced by truck drivers. He undertook the journey during the night and in visuals and videos, the former Congress chief was seen sitting inside a truck, travelling with a driver and speaking to drivers at a dhaba.

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