WFI Suspends Eleven Wrestlers for Submitting Fake Birth Certificates Following MCD Verification

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The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) has taken action against 11 wrestlers for submitting fake birth certificates. This decision followed the Municipal Corporation of Delhi's (MCD) verification of 110 documents.

The MCD clarified that 95 delayed registrations were conducted under the Sub-Divisional Magistrate's orders, absolving itself of any wrongdoing.

Wrestling in India faces challenges with overage athletes competing in younger categories and wrestlers using fake certificates to represent different states. Some birth certificates were issued 12-15 years post-birth, raising suspicions. The WFI provided a list to the MCD for verification, leading to the discovery of these discrepancies.

Fake Certificates and State Representation

The MCD confirmed issuing birth certificates but noted that delayed registrations occur only under SDM orders. In trials for national junior teams, many wrestlers enter lower age groups, gaining an unfair advantage over genuine competitors. Haryana, a wrestling hub, sees fierce competition, prompting some athletes to use fake certificates to compete through Delhi.

The WFI observed that several wrestlers from Haryana managed to obtain MCD-issued birth certificates, facilitating their participation via Delhi. The MCD reported that 95 certificates were issued following SDM orders, while 11 were identified as fake or altered. These belonged to Saksham, Manuj, Kavita, Anshu, Arush Rana, Shubham, Gautam, Jagrup Dhankar, Nakul, Dushyant, and Siddharth Baliyan.

Suspensions and Ongoing Efforts

Six of the fake certificates originated from Narela zone, two from Najafgarh, and one each from Rohini, Civil Line, and City zone. "We have sent a suspension notice to six of these wrestlers today August 7. We had already suspended five others for submitting fake certificates," stated a WFI official. The federation is committed to ensuring fairness and preventing any undue advantage.

The MCD also highlighted that two wrestlers manipulated registration dates that did not match its records. Meanwhile, Neeraj Kumar has approached the sports ministry regarding a state-level meet incident involving his daughter Ritika and Haryana wrestler Ishika.

Complaint to Sports Ministry

Neeraj Kumar complained about Ishika competing for Delhi in a recent state-level event despite being from Haryana. "Recently in a Delhi state-level competition, Ishika was allowed to compete in the 53kg weight category. This is in violation of the domicile rule made by the WFI," he wrote.

He enclosed documents proving Ritika's Haryana residency and requested an inquiry for transparency. The WFI aims to maintain a fair system where no genuine athlete is disadvantaged and continues efforts to address these issues.

With inputs from PTI