Indian wrestler Sushil Kumar has recently secured a berth in the 2018 Commonwealth Games after beating Jitender Kumar in the 74 kg weight category in the qualification trials. Now, Sushil made headlines for the wrong reason after an alleged supporters’ group of his came to blow with the supporters group of fellow wrestler Praveena Rana.
The opening day of the trials, attended by, among others, Wrestling Federation of India president Brijbhushan Singh Sharan, ended on a stormy note at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium. Sushil had fought Rana for a spot in next year’s CWG but the latter reportedly resorted to unfair means during the bout.
Things took an ugly turn when Rana, after losing to Sushil in the semifinal clash, claimed that the decorated wrestler’s supporters beat him and his elder brother “for daring to take the ring” against him.
Praveen’s brother, who was allegedly one of the victims of the fight between fans, told ANI that some attackers threatened to kill him and also claimed that they would not allow Rana to participate in the upcoming Pro Wrestling League.
A video of the fight surfaced online showing two groups of people being engaged in an ugly brawl. Sushil downplayed the whole incident and said, “He bit me but no problem, it might be his tactics to stop me from performing well. All this is a part of sports. Whatever happened here was wrong. I condemn it. There was mutual respect after the fight ended.”
Rana also alleged that Sushil’s supporters have given him death threats and dared him to participate in the upcoming Pro Wrestling League.
Watch The Video Here:
#WATCH: Scuffle broke out between alleged supporters of wrestlers Sushil Kumar and Parveen Rana at K. D. Jadhav Stadium in Delhi; reason not yet ascertained pic.twitter.com/sigLOa3koY
— ANI (@ANI) December 29, 2017
Sushil Kumar was on Saturday, booked by the Delhi Police in connection with his supporters clashing with those of rival wrestler Parveen Rana. Sushil and his supporters have booked under IPC section 341 (wrongful restraint) and 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), the latter attracting an imprisonment of up to one year or a monetary fine of Rs 1,000 or both, police officials said.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) Mandeep Singh Randhawa confirmed that an FIR has been lodged but the reason behind the brawl was being probed. He said the police have not received any complaint against Parveen Rana or his followers from Sushil Kumar or his camp.
Sushil was out of action since the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, he made a comeback during Commonwealth Wrestling Championship earlier this year. Ahead of the 2016 Rio Olympics, the wrestler wasn’t able to take part in the 2015 selection trials for World Championships and hence didn’t qualify for the showpiece event.
After getting a royal snub from the Wrestling Federation of India and Delhi High Court, which cost him the Rio ticket, the decorated Olympian will finally be able to represent his nation at an event as big as the Commonwealth Games next year.
“My Guru Satpal Singh and Baba Ramdev Ji always keep motivating me to play well,” Sushil Kumar said after qualifying for 2018 Commonwealth Games.
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