“Getting justice will be bigger for me than playing in the Asian Games,” says ace wrestler Bajrang Punia

Even on a rain-marred day in Delhi, the wrestlers continue to protest. They were a little scattered but their resolve is still intact as they wait for justice against the former Wrestling Federation of India chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.

The wrestlers once again have refused to return to training or take part in the ranking series in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. The series will start on June 1 and run till June 4. However, the protesting wrestlers have decided not to take part in the event. This will be the fourth event that they will miss. They have already skipped the Zagreb and Alexandria Ranking series in February and the Senior Asian Championships in Astana last month. So they are literally putting their career on the line to seek justice.

Reports suggest that the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) have reached out to the wrestlers before submitting the entries for the event. But the protesting wrestlers have turned down the opportunity.

Bajrang Punia, who is one of the best in the country has shared more on the development. He highlights that the protest is their priority and without proper diet and training, they are not going to take part in any event.

“We are not going to participate without proper training. We are completely out of shape at the moment without a proper diet and routine,” he told in an interaction with The Bridge.

“We are sitting on protest and this is our priority at the moment,” Bajrang added.

While Bajrang and Vinesh Phogat’s last event was the World Championships last September where they won bronze, Sakshi Malik’s last event was the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham where she bagged the gold back in August last year.

Bajrang Punia even claimed that for him justice takes a higher precedence than the Asian Games, which will be played later this year. “We want to play at the Asian Games but getting justice will be bigger for me than playing at the Asian Games,” He told in front of the media.

Despite Supreme Court’s direction to provide security to the protesting wrestlers, the wrestlers have refused any police security. Bajrang, Vinesh and Sakshi have refused to take up the offer of keeping personal security officers.