With the wrestler's protest intensifying over the last few days, the star Indian grapplers Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat and Sakshi Malik travelled to Haridwar to throw their international medals after not getting any responses from the government. However, in a turn of events, the wrestlers decided to give their medals to Naresh Tikait, while handing the government a five-day ultimatum to respond to their requests.
2016 Rio Olympics bronze medallist Sakshi Malik revealed in a statement on her Twitter handle that the protesting wrestlers will travel to Haridwar on Tuesday to immerse the medals in the holy river at 6 pm.
"These medals are our life and soul. We are going to immerse them in the Ganges because she is Maa Ganga. After that, there is no point of living, so we will sit on a hunger strike until death at India Gate," she said in the statement written in Hindi.
The same statement was also shared by her compatriot Vinesh Phogat. However, they were then convinced to not throw their medal by the farmer's leader Naresh Tikait.
Sakshi added that the system kept trying to scare the victims and stop the protest instead of catching the harasser. She also wants President Draupadi Murmu and PM Narendra Modi to address the issue.
"We don't want these medals now because by making us wear them this shiny system is using it as a mask for its publicity while exploiting us. If we speak against this exploitation it prepares to send us to jail."
This comes after the wrestlers were forcefully detained by the Delhi Police, the videos of which have since gone viral. The protestors, including Olympic medal winners Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik, along with other international grapplers like Vinesh Phogat and Sangeeta Phogat, were going to organise a women's Mahapanchayat. But the police intervened, detaining them and taking them to different locations.
The agitating wrestlers, including likes of Olympic medallists Bajrang Punia, Sakshi and Asian Games gold winner Vinesh have been demanding the arrest of outgoing WFI President Brij Bhushan Singh who they have accused of sexually harassing several women grapplers.
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