CHENNAI: Soon after wrestler Sakshi Malik won a bronze for India at the Rio Olympics last August, promises of monetary awards started pouring in. Among those was her State government’s announcement that she would get in the region of Rs 3.5 crore in cash. It was a cumulative figure. Yet, going by Sakshi’s tweets on Saturday, the promises are yet to be fulfilled.
Usually a calm person, Sakshi lashed out at the Haryana government. “Medal ka vada maine pura kiya, Haryana sarkar apna vada kab pura karegi (I fulfilled my promise of winning an Olympic medal, when will Haryana government fulfill its promise?),” she tweeted.
The 58kg bronze winner asked whether the commitments were meant only to draw attention. “Announcements made by the Haryana government after my OLYMPIC MEDAL win were for MEDIA ONLY?”
Before the Games in Rio, the Haryana government had announced that athletes from the State to win medals would be greeted with a windfall. They marked Rs 6 crore for gold, Rs 4 crore for silver and Rs 2 crore for bronze. Also, a plot of land in the State. The government responded late on Saturday to claim that they have released more than half of the promised sum. There have been occasions when athletes did not receive promised amounts from governments. However, late on Saturday a minister from the Haryana government reportedly dismissed Sakshi’s allegations and said she had been given Rs 2.5 crore.