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AIS Joint Secretary Baljit Singh Sekhon Slapped With Suspension Following WUG Debacle
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Multiple Indian athletes were barred from taking part in their respective events due to administrative errors, including misspelling of athletes' names in a national embarrassment.
Joint Secretary of the Association of Indian Universities (AIU), Baljit Singh Sekhon, has been handed a suspension by the governing body's administrative department following the World Universities Games debacle in Germany.
Multiple Indian athletes were barred from taking part in their respective events due to administrative errors, including misspelling of athletes' names in a national embarrassment.
The incident caused widespread outrage and flagged the failures of the administrative unit as multiple athletes missed out on their events despite being present at the venue during the time of the competition.
The Indian badminton team, which secured bronze at the ongoing Games in Rhine-Ruhr, Germany, faced controversy when it was disclosed that six of the 12 selected players were prohibited from participating due to officials' failure to correctly submit all names during the managers' meeting on July 16.
Female quarter-miler Devyani Bazala also alleged that she couldn't participate in her event as her name went missing because of late alteration by officials in submitting the confirmation list.
The AIU has since formed a four-member panel, to probe into the mismanagement, and has been instructed to submit their findings within a period of 15 days.
The panel is set to look into the non-inclusion of selected athletes, the exclusion of designated coaches and the penalties imposed by the event organisers in addition to any procedural lapses, and recommend corrective and disciplinary measures in accordancw with their findings.
'The inquiry panel will investigate the entire matter and to ensure that it works impartially, we have decided to suspend our joint secretary Baljit Singh Skehon. The panel will submit its report within 15 days," AIU Secretary General Dr Pankaj Mitta said.
'In addition, the AIU has also ensured that athletes who were denied participation due to the manager's mistake have been given certificates and medals by FISU. This was after we held discussions with FISU," he added.
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First Published:
July 23, 2025, 10:06 IST
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