Kabaddi player Negi’s name dropped from HP’s award list, sparks row

Nahan: A controversy has erupted after the name of Ritu Negi -- an Arjuna Awardee, former captain of the Indian kabaddi team and a member of the squad that recently won gold at the Asian Games in Japan -- was dropped from the list of cash award recipients released by the Himachal Pradesh government. Ritu hails from the Shillai region of Himachal’s Sirmaur district and is married in Panipat, Haryana.

The Himachal government removed her name at the last minute from the list of athletes eligible for a cash award of Rs one crore, leaving Ritu and her family disappointed. On October 5, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu had announced prize money of Rs one crore for three Himachal players in the Indian women’s kabaddi team -- Pushpa Rana, Jyoti Thakur and Bhawna Thakur -- who won the gold medal in kabaddi at the Asian Games, as well as Indian women’s cricket team player Renuka Thakur. Ritu described the government’s move as deeply insulting.

Expressing her disappointment, she told the media: “Until a week ago, I was a daughter of Himachal and the CM shared a congratulatory message on Facebook, while former CM Jairam Thakur and Member of Parliament Anurag Thakur had called to congratulate me.” “I simply cannot understand what changed so suddenly two days ago.” She questioned why such treatment was being meted out to an athlete who has represented the country in three consecutive Asian Games and won two gold medals and one silver. She pointed out that although she is employed by Indian Railways, she has consistently represented Himachal -- and not Haryana -- in domestic competitions. “Why Himachal Pradesh is behaving in such a way at this stage of my career?” she asked.

Ritu’s father, Bhavan Singh Negi, questioned on Friday from Shillai whether a girl ceases to be a daughter of her home state simply because she is married in another state.

He pointed out that Ritu had received a cash award from the Himachal government after winning gold at the 2023 Asian Games, despite being married in Haryana. The omission of Ritu’s name from the list has sparked an uproar among those associated with sports and politics, and the BJP has linked the issue to the pride of Himachal and the honour of the state’s daughter.

Raising the matter, former BJP MLA from Shillai and BJP state spokesperson Baldev Singh Tomar said that the Himachal government had not only hurt the dignity of a daughter of Himachal but also tarnished the state’s pride by omitting Ritu’s name from the award list. •

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

The Hans India