Wresters fear that their protest is becoming a tool for politically driven agendas

Leading wrestlers are worried that their protest against the WFI is becoming a tool for rival political parties to push anti-BJP agenda and taking the focus away from wrestling.

Ever since the story of the wrestlers resuming their sit-in protest against the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) and its former president Brij Bhushan Singh started gaining momentum in the tabloids and blew into a national controversy, it has been marred by political agendas of various kinds.

The wrestlers have primarily been protesting about mistreatment and corruption in the organisation and have levelled charges of sexual harassment against Singh, who is affiliated to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). This has led to several opposition parties taking up the fight for the wrestlers in order to push their own anti-BJP agendas and to corner the ruling dispensation over the sensitive issue.

The wrestlers are now afraid that they will end up becoming pawns in the larger political battle that is taking shape.

"Several people are entering the protest site and trying to project our movement as a 'bhadkau andolan'. But I want to tell them that this is the fight to save Indian wrestling from people like Brij Bhushan. People are here to support us and not to derive any political gains," Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist Bajrang Punia, one of the faces of the protest along with Olympians Vinesh Phogat and Sakshee Malikkh, told mediapersons here on Saturday.

"Politics is secondary to us. What is important is the dignity and honour of our women sportspersons. This is a players' movement, so don't link it with any political party," he added.

While the wrestlers might be concerned about the current state of the movement especially after the latest turn of events, it should be added that it was they themselves who gave a call to political parties to join their stir against Singh this time.

When they were initially protesting against the WFI in January this year, they hadn’t allowed any political figure to share the stage with them. However, on Saturday, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra along with the party's Rajya Sabha MP from Haryana, Deepender Singh Hooda, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and Delhi mayor Shelly Oberoi visited the wrestlers at the protest site.

While Vadra and Kejirwal did express their solidarity to the wrestlers, they also used the platform  to criticise the BJP-ruled dispensation for its 'insensitive handling' of the issue, where the protesting grapplers have been forced to spend nights on the streets under open sky demanding justice.

"A few people are trying to take our movement to a different direction. We don't approve of it. This is a fight for justice for India's daughters," said Bajrang.

Vinesh Phogat has also tried to steer clear of any political attempts at sabotaging the protest after a group of people had raised anti-Modi slogans on Saturday.  "I want to tell the people holding constitutional posts that the common man also deserves respect and justice. We will never say anything against their honour. If we had said anything by mistake, we sincerely apologise for that because that was never our intention. We have been taught to respect elders. But, at the same time, we also want respect from the same set of people," she said.