United World Wrestling lifted the ban imposed on the Indian Wrestling Federation today, Tuesday, after five months of temporary suspension due to its failure to conduct elections on time. While the Indian federation was trying to recover from a sexual harassment scandal, it faced another setback in December when the Ministry of Sports suspended it and dismissed its newly elected council.
The international federation demanded new elections after the then president of the federation, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, a member of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was accused of harassment and criminal threats. Following this, the international federation stated that the Indian federation needed to protect wrestlers in order to lift the imposed suspension.
The international federation mentioned that its council met on February 9 and decided to lift the ban under certain conditions, including fair treatment. The federation clarified in a statement, "The Indian federation must hold elections for the athletes' committee. The candidates for this committee must be current or retired athletes within the last four years. The voting must be limited to athletes only."
It added, "These elections must take place during the trials or any national senior championship where this process can occur, no later than July 1, 2024."
