NEW DELHI: Wrestler and Congress MLA Vinesh Phogat on Tuesday responded to allegations by fellow sportsperson Sakshi Malik , addressing claims that the protest against former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh was motivated by "greed".
Phogat, who along with Bajrang Punia was granted an exemption from the 2023 Asian Games trials, was asked by a reporter whether Babita Phogat’s desire to replace Singh as WFI head had sparked the protest. Dismissing the speculation, Vinesh questioned the notion of greed behind their actions.
"No one gave me anything in writing, nor can I assume someone’s intentions. The good thing is that we fought for a good cause. If playing in the Olympics and winning a medal for our country is greed, then yes, I will carry that 'greed' till my last breath. What exactly is greed? If, as an athlete, speaking up for fellow athletes and standing by my sisters is greed, then I consider it a good kind of greed. The desire to play for the country should always remain," Phogat said.
In her recently released book Witness, Olympic bronze medallist Sakshi Malik claimed that Phogat and Punia’s decision to accept exemptions from the trials hurt their protest’s integrity. Malik, one of the key faces of the movement against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, argued that the protest began to lose credibility when people close to Phogat and Punia allegedly filled their minds with “greed.”
"The old way of thinking selfishly was taking over once again. The people close to Bajrang and Vinesh had started filling their minds with greed," Sakshi wrote, without naming those involved. She added that their decision made the movement seem "selfish" and led some supporters to question its true intentions.
The protest was originally aimed at removing Singh, who was accused of sexually harassing female wrestlers—a case still being heard in a Delhi court. While the ad-hoc committee running WFI granted both Phogat and Punia exemptions from the trials, Malik refused the favour and opted out of the Games. Phogat later suffered an injury, and Punia returned from Hangzhou without a medal.
Malik stressed that accepting the exemptions caused divisions within the movement. "It put us in a situation where many supporters started to think that we were actually in the protest for selfish reasons," she wrote.
The protest culminated on May 28, 2023, when the wrestlers’ march to the new Parliament Building was blocked by police. Shortly after, both Phogat and Punia joined the Congress party ahead of the Haryana assembly elections. Phogat won the Julana constituency, while Punia was appointed head of the party’s national farmers' unit.
Phogat, who along with Bajrang Punia was granted an exemption from the 2023 Asian Games trials, was asked by a reporter whether Babita Phogat’s desire to replace Singh as WFI head had sparked the protest. Dismissing the speculation, Vinesh questioned the notion of greed behind their actions.
"No one gave me anything in writing, nor can I assume someone’s intentions. The good thing is that we fought for a good cause. If playing in the Olympics and winning a medal for our country is greed, then yes, I will carry that 'greed' till my last breath. What exactly is greed? If, as an athlete, speaking up for fellow athletes and standing by my sisters is greed, then I consider it a good kind of greed. The desire to play for the country should always remain," Phogat said.
In her recently released book Witness, Olympic bronze medallist Sakshi Malik claimed that Phogat and Punia’s decision to accept exemptions from the trials hurt their protest’s integrity. Malik, one of the key faces of the movement against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, argued that the protest began to lose credibility when people close to Phogat and Punia allegedly filled their minds with “greed.”
"The old way of thinking selfishly was taking over once again. The people close to Bajrang and Vinesh had started filling their minds with greed," Sakshi wrote, without naming those involved. She added that their decision made the movement seem "selfish" and led some supporters to question its true intentions.
The protest was originally aimed at removing Singh, who was accused of sexually harassing female wrestlers—a case still being heard in a Delhi court. While the ad-hoc committee running WFI granted both Phogat and Punia exemptions from the trials, Malik refused the favour and opted out of the Games. Phogat later suffered an injury, and Punia returned from Hangzhou without a medal.
Malik stressed that accepting the exemptions caused divisions within the movement. "It put us in a situation where many supporters started to think that we were actually in the protest for selfish reasons," she wrote.
The protest culminated on May 28, 2023, when the wrestlers’ march to the new Parliament Building was blocked by police. Shortly after, both Phogat and Punia joined the Congress party ahead of the Haryana assembly elections. Phogat won the Julana constituency, while Punia was appointed head of the party’s national farmers' unit.
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