"Announced My Retirement But...": Olympian Sakshee Malikkh Drops Big Hint

Former wrestler Sakshee Malikkh stated that she has not seen anything in writing about the suspension of the newly elected body of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) or its chief Sanjay Singh, adding that wrestlers' fight is not with the government.

In a major decision, coming in light of fresh protests by star wrestlers such as Ms Malikkh and Bajrang Punia over the election of an aide of deposed WFI president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh as the new president of the wrestling federation, the Union Sports Ministry on Sunday pulled up the sport's premier governing body in the country along with all its office-bearers.

The decision came close on the heels of Mr Singh announcing Nandini Nagar in Gond district of Uttar Pradesh as the venue for the U-15 and U-20 nationals by the end of the year.

Ms Malikkh praised the decision but also said there was no clarity on the suspension and told reporters, "I have not seen anything in writing yet. I don't know whether only Mr Singh or the entire body has been suspended. Our fight was not with the government. Our fight is for women wrestlers, I have announced my retirement but want the upcoming wrestlers to get justice."

She dropped a hint about a possible change in her retirement decision.

"I will tell you about the decision according to the federation that would be formed," she added.

On Sunday, the Sports Ministry released a press release to label WFI's decision to host the competition as "complete disregard to the sports code."

"The decisions made by the newly elected executive body of the WFI demonstrate a blatant disregard for the established legal and procedural norms, violating both the WFI's constitutional provisions and the National Sports Development Code. The newly elected body appeared to be in complete control of former office bearers in complete disregard to the Sports Code. The business of the Federation is being run from the premises controlled by former office bearers," the ministry added.

Earlier this week, Sanjay Singh was appointed as the new chief, an aide of the former WFT President Singh.

An hour later, Ms Malikkh, distraught and emotional, broke down as she left the venue announcing her retirement from wrestling while addressing a press conference in the national capital.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)