Subdued excitement shrouds Chhatrasal as Sushil gets bail

In the dusty precincts of Chhatrasal Stadium, they mention Sushil Kumar’s name with reverence, even as the disgraced two-time Olympic medallist’s reputation has been tarnished by his arrest in a murder case. So, when Chattrasal’s most famous son was granted bailafter 20 months —he was given a week’s bailfor a kneesurgery inJuly 2023 — on Tuesday, the news was expectedly met with delight, albeit subdued.

In the pre-Covid years before the wrestling hall was moved to the dank basement, the spacious, skeletal room on the ground floor served as Sushil’s training ground. When in the mood, pehelwanji, as he was known, would toss around wrestlers for fun, pulling off one move after another, churning out one gruelling round after another as hordes of wide-eyed trainees watched.

In his three-and-a-half year absence from India’s greatest wrestling nursery -- he was serving time in Tihar jail over charges of murdering fellow wrestler Sagar Dhankar over an alleged property dispute -- a giant frame of Sushil receiving his Khel Ratna award continued to occupy pride of place. Generations of youngsters have drawn inspiration from the legendary wrestler, hanging on to his every word, trying hard to earn his approval.

Sushil’s bail, subject to furnishing bonds of ₹50,000 with two sureties, took into consideration the period of custody and slow pace of trial. He had approached the Delhi high court against the city court’s July 2024 order of rejecting his bail. In his petition before the high court, argued by advocate RS Malik, Sushil had submitted that he had been in jail for three and a half years and there was no likelihood of the trial to conclude in near future since the prosecution had only examined 31 out of 222 witnesses. It went on to add that the key witness in the case had failed to identify him, the court had already framed charges against him and examined material witnesses.

Sushil, who won a bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and a silver at the 2012 London Olympics, remains India’s only wrestling world champion, a feat he achieved in 2010.

He was arrested on May 23, 2021 by Delhi Police to bring the curtains down on a storied career.

In Chhatrasal though, his wrestling feats far outweigh the heinous charges. Coaches and wrestlers expertly sidestep any discussions that remotely concern that fateful night, keeping their excitement about his impending release under wraps. His influence though remains undiminished.

“Sushil was my growing-up hero. He is God to us,” Paris Olympics bronze medallist Aman Sehrawat once told this daily.

Sehrawat is known to have spoken to Sushil on a few occasions when the latter was still imprisoned. “He follows my bouts. He told me to stay low and look to attack. I am a bit of a slow starter, so pehelwanji asked me to have an offensive mindset, aim for the ankle holds, and look for early takedowns,” Sehrawat had told HT.

Sehrawat’s bronze was India’s eighth Olympic medal in wrestling, and six of them have come from Chhatrasal trainees. Besides Sushil and Aman, Yogeshwar Dutt (silver in London 2012), Bajrang Punia (bronze in Tokyo 2021), and Ravi Dahiya (silver in Tokyo 2021) have all earned their stripes here. Barring Yogeshwar, who was Sushil’s contemporary, the rest took up the sport following Sushil’s epochal medal in Beijing.

“He is obviously a giant in Indian wrestling and all the coaches and wrestlers are very happy that he has got bail. However, we haven’t planned any ceremony or welcome for him,” Lalit Kumar, the Dronacharya Awardee coach from Chhatrasal, said. The reasons aren’t hard to guess. “We are not eager to show our excitement because he is facing murder charges and so an extravagant celebration will create undue controversy,” a coach, who did not wish to be named, said.

“That said, Sushil remains our brightest jewel and we are proud of him. We like to dissociate his wrestling from his criminal case. That’s how wrestlers look at him too,” the coach added.

“We don’t know whether he’ll come here, but whenever he does, it will be a very emotional moment for all of us.”