Wrestlers' protest: Appeal to Sachin Tendulkar to speak up for wrestlers

It was business unusual late Monday evening as a group of people congregated in Goregaon West to show solidarity with wrestlers who were protesting in Delhi They demanded what they said was the ldquolong overdue arrest of BJP MP and Wrestling Federation of India chief Brij Bhushan Sharan SinghrdquoTop Indian wrestlers including Sakshi Malik Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia had been hunkering down at Jantar Mantar New Delhi demanding the arrest of Singh for sexually assaulting seven wrestlers including a minorThe protest reached a flashpoint when they marched towards the new Parliament complex which was being inaugurated by the prime minister on May 28 The grapplers were manhandled hauled away by cops and detained in high voltage drama At the same time cops cleared their protest sitemdashJantar MantarItrsquos timelsquoMumbai has mumbled for too long now let us thunderrsquomdashthis was the message of the Goregaon gathering Bombay Catholic Sabha BCS President Dolphy DrsquoSouza who called the meeting said ldquoThis is to show that a large section of Mumbaikars too stand with our wrestlers When there is an FIR under POCSO there has to be an arrest This has not happened which points to the moral decay of governance Is lsquobeti bachao beti padhaorsquo only a feelgood slogan Which woman or girl would feel safe hererdquo asked DrsquoSouzaCandles bannersAs the protesters unfurled banners and lit candles the gathering said ldquoThis is just the spark that should lead to a blazerdquo Sylvia DrsquoSouza one of them added ldquoWe may be many miles away but the subject is close to home for so many womenrdquo ldquoIs this the way we respect and support our wrestlers who brought glory to Indiardquo asked Violet DrsquoSouza another member of the gathering One Winnie Saldanha angrily pointed out ldquoThe problems of the grapplers seem to be royally ignoredrdquoActivist Milind Ranade speaks out at the Tuesday meet PicSameer MarkandeAs shouts of ldquoshame shamerdquo rent the air professor Arvind Nigale said emphatically ldquoWe must gather in public places to protestrdquoOn the accusation that the sports stars brought disrepute to the country through their protest the academician added ldquoIt is PM Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah who are bringing disrepute to the nation by not taking cognisance of the matter Many claimed that India has been shamed internationally by scandal traversing at the speed of light in a world where borders have melted awayThe fightThe Monday gathering was followed by a fiery press conference on Tuesday afternoon at SoBorsquos Marathi Patrakar Sangh at Azad Maidan A mix of activists and sportspersons announced a signature campaign at Shivaji Park on Friday ldquoto spread awareness among the publicrdquoActivist Sangeeta Joshi said ldquoPeople are interested in this aandolan but we need louder voices The sentiment sweeping through is that if Olympic champs cannot get justice then what about ordinary women I have heard questions like lsquowhy did these women not speak out earlierrsquo lsquowhy speak now after you have medals and famersquo We need to introspect about victim blamingrdquoMahendra Chemburkar former champion gymnast said ldquoThere were questions like lsquowhy other sports persons are not supporting these gymnastsrsquo but now we have a channel through which we can do sordquo Manohar Salvi sports administrator added ldquoThere is fear in an athletersquos mind as he or she takes on a person who has power over onersquos career The Indian Olympic Association must speak up We are waiting to hear from them Now however there is no going backrdquoAn appealActivist Milind Ranade sounded the brave bugle asking for sportspersons to join the good fight ldquoWe have many like chess champ Pravin Thipsay who have joined us in the quest for justice for these women We have Anil Kumble the 1983 World Cup winning cricket team supporting these womenrdquo Neeraj Chopra has proved the gold is not just around his neck but in his heart too The javelin Olympic gold medallist has supported the wrestlers and that is simply humongousldquoWersquore waiting for someone like Sachin Tendulkar to extend his support Imagine Tendulkar holding a candle and standing at the Gateway of India in support of the wrestlershellipthat might change the complexion of this satyagraha completelyrdquo Ranade said Activist Firoze Mithiborwala said on a note of finality ldquoThe time for prevarication is over We demand the immediate arrest of Brij Bhushan Sharan Singhrdquo The opinions were many but the overall mood wasmdashMumbai it is time to pin our leaders on to the mat because in this battle there are no medals for silence9 JuneDay they plan a signature campaign