Sushil back at his theatre of dreams, this time to recreate an alleged killing
NEW DELHI: The sprawling Chhatrasal stadium in northwest Delhi is where it all began for two-time Olympic medallist and world champion wrestler Sushil Kumar.
This is where his wrestling career started in earnest, when, as a 12-year-old boy, he enrolled into the wrestling school run by Asian Games champion Satpal Singh in 1995.
The stadium complex became Kumar’s home, and in a sense, he never left -- till he went on a 19-day run from the law on May 4, ending in his arrest by Delhi Police on May 23.
On Tuesday, the man who had made Chhatrasal India’s most iconic wrestling destination was led back to the stadium, flanked by police and forensic teams, to recreate the alleged killing of a 23-year-old wrestler called Sagar
Dhankad.
The scene where Kumar had plotted his greatest triumphs on the mat was now a crime scene. For more than an hour, investigators questioned Kumar and collected evidence, based on what the police claim is footage of the crime recorded on the mobile phone of one of Kumar’s associates. Kumar’s associate Ajay Sherawat, who was with him when the wrestler was arrested, was also questioned at the scene.
On the night of May 4, Dhankad, who also trained at Chhatrasal, was beaten to death in a brawl involving two groups, one of which, according to the police, was led by Kumar.
Kumar and Sherawat were also taken to an apartment in Shalimar Bagh, where Dhankad and four other wrestlers lived. This, police said, is where the fight began.