Zubair’s Misleading Claim: Sanjay Singh Was Not Appointed, But Was Elected as New WFI President

Sanjay Singh, a close aide of former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president Brij Bhushan Singh, was recently elected as the new President of the WFI after the elections held in New Delhi on Thursday (December 21). After the results were declared, Sakshi Malik, who led the wrestlers protest against Brij Bhushan, addressed a press conference, where she announced that she was disappointed with the results and had decided to quit wrestling.

Amidst all this, a tweet has been made by Mohammad Zubair (archived link), co-founder of Islamic propaganda portal Alt News. Quoting ANI’s tweet, Zubair wrote, “Tweet like BJP: BJP has insulted over 60 crore Indian women by appointing a close aide of former WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh as the new president of the Wrestling Federation of India.” With the tweet, he claimed that Sanjay Singh was rather appointed than elected by the BJP.

Tweet like BJP: 60+ crore Indian Women insulted by BJP by appointing Former WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh's close Aid as the new president of Wrestling Federation of India. https://t.co/8ueODlMCJW

— Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) December 21, 2023

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Fact Check

In our fact check research, Only Fact found that Mohammad Zubair’s claim is misleading. As mentioned in the Article VII of the WFI Constitution, the elections must be held in accordance with the model election guidelines of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. Secret ballot will be used for the election, and no proxy voting is allowed.

Moreover, Article VII of the WFI Constitution emphasizes fair and transparent elections within the Wrestling Federation of India, guided by the Model Election Guidelines of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. The use of secret ballot adds a layer of privacy to the voting process.

Regarding the voting process, Article IV of the WFI Constitution states that all state wrestling and union territory wrestling associations send two representatives to the General Council. Each representative will be allowed to cast one vote.

Furthermore, Zubair’s claim is misleading because there is a difference between being appointed and being elected. An appointed official is selected by a higher authority, while an elected official is selected by a voting process. Under WFI elections, open election process is conducted and representatives of all the state associations participate in it. Voting takes place and the candidate who wins the majority is elected.

Direct involvement of political parties is avoided in the election process for the President of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI). It usually includes representatives from wrestling associations and bodies related to the sport. The WFI and other sports federations have their own constitution, bylaws and election procedures that outline the eligibility criteria and voting process.

Conclusion: The claim made by Zubair that Sanjay Singh is appointed by BJP is misleading. Because as per Articles IV and VII of the WFI Constitution there is a voting process involved when electing the President of the WFI. The President is not directly appointed by any political party. They are elected according to the votes cast by the representatives of all the state associations.

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