The Indian badminton squad that won the mixed team bronze medal at the ongoing World University Games in Rhine-Ruhr, Germany overshadowed by a controversy stemming from a major administrative oversight that left half the squad unable to compete.
Out of the 12 players selected to represent India at the prestigious event, only six were permitted to take the court. The remaining six athletes were barred from participation after officials reportedly failed to submit the full list of names during the managers` meeting held on July 16.
“This is not just mismanagement, it`s career sabotage. We demand answers, accountability, and that our voices be heard. We didn`t lose a match, we lost our right to even participate,” wrote Alisha Khan, one of the players left out, on Instagram. “This isn`t just a mistake. It`s career sabotage by AIU and our team officials. We demand justice.”
According to sources, BV Rao and Ajit Mohan were the Association of Indian Universities (AIU) officials who attended the meeting. The AIU, which is the nodal body for university-level sports in the country, acknowledged the incident.
“We have been informed about this and the matter is being investigated,” AIU Secretary Dr Pankaj Mittal told PTI while refusing to comment any further.
According to a source, the issue was not just an error but stemmed from “systematic irregularities” starting from the selection trials held at Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT), Bhubaneswar.
“During the managers` meeting, officials were given a letter listing all 12 players from India. It was their responsibility to read it carefully, check for missing or injured players, and confirm or adjust the names accordingly. However, they took it lightly,” the source said.
“The names of players who hadn`t attended trials were there. They came here only to enjoy. In the meeting, they also made a basic mistake. They were supposed to declare which player would play singles, doubles, and mixed, but didn`t process it properly.”
Saneeth Dayanand, Sathish Kumar Karunakaran, Devika Sihag, Tasnim Mir, Varshini Viswanath Sri, and Vaishnavi Khadkekar were the six who competed in the mixed team event.
India defeated Macau but lost to Hong Kong in the group stage, then beat the USA in the round of 16 and Malaysia in the quarterfinals before losing to Chinese Taipei in the semifinals.
Rohan Kumar, Darshan Pujari, Aditi Bhatt, Abhinash Mohanty, Viraj Kuvale, and Alisha Khan were part of the 12-member squad but did not get to play.
Pujari has written to the Badminton Association of India (BAI), demanding a thorough investigation.
“This level of mismanagement has caused significant emotional distress to the affected athletes. The players who were left out of the nomination list have been unfairly denied the chance to contribute on the field and be acknowledged as part of this achievement,” he wrote in his email.
The selection trials were held in April at KIIT, Bhubaneswar, with over 210 players, including top-tier national and international university athletes, participating.
However, a source as per news agency PTI alleged that the players who actually topped the trials were left out of the mixed team event despite being part of the squad.
“The team manager made the blunder. The officials didn`t focus during the meeting, and after the trials they didn`t follow the proper process. They just submitted six names, so the other six were not allowed by FISU,” the source said.
“…the team travelled all the way, and yet in the manager`s meeting they missed out names. I don`t know how it is possible to overlook such a basic responsibility.
“Players have been misled throughout… officials are giving them false hopes about participation and medals in individual events. If the players are robbed of their chance like this, it is unacceptable.”
A player also alleged that officials goofed up on the team jerseys which “didn`t carry the country`s name properly”, leading to fine.
Similar complaint from 400m runner Devyani Bazala
Woman quartermiler Devyani Bazala also alleged that she could not compete as her name “has gone missing because of late alteration by the officials in submitting the confirmation list”.
“I have been preparing for this event for over a year … but (when) the start list for Day 1 came out … my name went missing from 400m women list,” she wrote in a social media post datelined Bochum in Germany.
“It has a major impact on my life and my sporting career, it really takes a lot of sacrifice, courage and passion to be here. Who is to be blamed?”
(With PTI inputs)
