A lot of expectations were riding on India’s new wrestling sensation Jaskanwar Gill when he went to Turkey for his first-ever international tournament on July 28th.
But let alone winning a medal for the country, the 25-year-old promising scuffler from Tarn Taran district in Punjab, could not even participate as the organisers did not allow him to take the mat because he was wearing a ‘patka’ (a small turban).
According to the international rules guarding the sport, a player cannot wear a headgear that can pose a safety hazard for the opponent.
Known in the circuit as ‘Jassa Patti’, the fighter was reportedly asked to tie his hair behind the neck like women athletes, an order which he refused to obey for the sake of his religious beliefs, delaying his chance to leave a mark on the international arena.
“I told the referee that I have long hair and I need to tie it with the patka. I tried convincing everyone there that this for a religious purpose. Even my coach tried talking to everyone but nothing worked. They did not allow me to compete with it,” said Mr Gill.
However, a spokesperson of the Turkey Wrestling Federation was quoted as saying that it was not their fault and that the matter must be taken up by the Wrestling Federation of India with the United World Wrestling (UWW) whose representatives were conducting the tournament.
But when UWW was approached, they too didn’t give a formidable response.
“We haven’t received any complaints from India, so we cannot say anything, “read their response.
The young athlete has won a gold medal in the All India Inter-Varsity tournament and a bronze in the National Games among his top achievements.
Meanwhile, former deputy chief minister of Punjab, Sukhbir Singh Badal has raised the issue with the Ministry of External Affairs which has in turn taken cognizance of the matter.
Mr Gill’s case is the latest episode of personal religious commitment coming into conflict with the rules of sports.
In 1999, a Canadian Sikh boxer, Pardeep Singh Nagra was disallowed to box by Canadian Amateur Boxing Association (CABA) for having a beard - a mandatory article of his Sikh faith.
But on the other hand, there are also those who are blazing the trail in their respective sports while maintaining articles of the Sikh faith.
While Candian fighter Arjan Singh Bhullar, an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fighter had created history in April earlier this year by becoming the first player in the genre of sport to walk to the cage wearing a turban, Prabhpal Singh, an Indian international wrestler in the Greco-Roman style, actually competes wearing a patka and claims he has never faced an issue.
