United World Wrestling (UWW), the international governing body of the sport, suspended the membership of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) with immediate effect on Thursday, August 24, for failing to conduct its elections on time. The elections for WFI’s next governing body were supposed to take place in June 2023. However, it didn’t happen owing to a series of protests by Indian wrestlers against former WFI chief and BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, who is accused of sexual harassment by several women wrestlers.
UWW’s decision to suspend WFI would mean that Indian wrestlers will not be able to compete in the upcoming World Wrestling Championships under the Indian flag, and instead will have to participate as ‘neutral athletes’. The championships are scheduled to be held in the third week of September. The suspension also means that Indian wrestlers would have to compete at the Olympics under a neutral flag.
Earlier, in April this year, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) had appointed an ad hoc panel to ensure that elections were held within 45 days. UWW had warned at the time that it would take action in case the ad-hoc Committee is not able to conduct elections within the deadline.
UWW had also noted that earlier this year, the Asian Wrestling Championships 2023, which were to be held in New Delhi, India were relocated to Astana, Kazakhstan “due to the recent developments in Indian wrestling and a pending inquiry by the Indian sports ministry against the Wrestling Federation of India.” UWW had also condemned the manhandling and detention of protesting Indian wrestlers by the Delhi police in May.