Para shuttler ignored for Arjuna despite more marks

CHANDIGARH: Despite having the most points among Paralympic applicants for the Arjuna awards, double world championship medal-winning badminton player Raj Kumar has been ignored. He has 72.5 points for his international achievements, but athlete Sandeep Singh Maan, with 50 points, has been chosen for the awards to be presented on August 29.

“I was ignored despite having the highest marks among the applicants. Somehow I arranged the list and found I got 22.5 points more than Sandeep. I have met senior SAI officials,” said the player, who hails from Patiala district of Punjab. “I have decided to move the court to get my due.”

Raj Kumar won silver in the doubles and mixed doubles in the 2014 Asian Games. He also won three world championship medals, including two singles bronze medals in 2013 and 2015.

Maan, who hails from Rajasthan, won silver in 200m and 400m at 2014 Asian Games. He also won medals in the IPC Athletics Asian-Oceania Championships this year, but the performances were not considered as the tournament doesn’t meet the ministry’s criteria for awarding points.

The points awarded by the sports ministry were placed before the awards committee headed by Justice (retd) SK Aggarwal. The para sports representative in the panel was Athens Games gold medallist Devendra Jhajharia, who hails from Rajasthan and will compete in the Rio Paralympics starting on September 7.

Jhajharia, when contacted, said: “Right now I don’t remember the points of the applicants. But it was the committee’s collective decision.”