Meet Anita Sheoran, the woman wrestler, seeking to end Brij Bhushan’s stranglehold on WFI | Sports News

IN LINE to be the first woman to head the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), Commonwealth Games 2010 gold medall Anita Sheron, 36, says winning the election for the post is important for her. She wants to break the decade-old stranglehold of outgoing WFI president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh on Indian wrestling, and usher in change.
Speaking to The Indian Express, Anita says, “The person I am contesting against is backed Brij Bhushan. If he wins, there will be no clean-up of the WFI because Brij Bhushan will pull the strings from the background. I don’t want that to happen for the sake of wrestling and women wrestlers. The election must bring about change.”
In the election for the WFI president’s post, Anita is pitted against Sanjay Kumar Singh, vice-president of the Uttar Pradesh Wrestling Association and a close aide of Brij Bhushan.

Brij Bhushan, the BJP MP from Kaiserganj, has been found liable for prosecution for sexual harassment, molestation and stalking of women wrestlers in the chargesheet of Delhi Police.
A witness and a corroborator in the case against him, Anita has the backing of some of India’s top wrestlers — Bajrang Punia, Sakshi Malik and Vinesh Phogat — who protested at Jantar Mantar demanding the arrest of Brij Bhushan.
“For me it is not about being the first woman president. It is about having the power to bring about positive change in the sport; a safe environment for women, upskilling of Indian coaches, bringing in experts like nutritions, strength trainers, sports physiologs, better diet at training centres, fairness in selection, eliminating favouritism. We have Olympic medals but the reputation of the federation is not good,” says Anita.

While the Punjab and Haryana High Court on Friday stayed the WFI elections, which were scheduled for Monday, on a petition filed the Haryana Wrestling Association, Anita says “putting wrestlers first” will always remain her top priority.
“I always had the thought that I could run the federation and bring about changes but didn’t follow it up. But when the protests happened, they (wrestlers) felt that a lady needed to become the president because it would be good for girls and the sport. Brij Bhushan behaved like a karthaa dhartaa. When he would get up, 50 people would get up with him. Wrestlers were scared to talk to him. I will be accessible to all wrestlers. I am here because of wrestlers and not the other way around. I would also like more women to come up as adminrators,” she says.
A trailblazer from an early age – she was the first international athlete from Dhani Mahu village, Bhiwani – the police inspector from Rohtak took up wrestling defying societal pressure. But it was never easy.
“My mother Santosh was a housewife and my father Dalip Singh a truck driver. My brother was like a security guard around his sers. He didn’t like it that I would go for morning walks or a run in the village. He didn’t even want me to watch television. I am thankful for my mother being progressive,” says Anita.
“She wanted her daughters to study and progress in life in whatever field they chose. She convinced my father that it was OK for me to shift to Bhiwani to study and train to become a wrestler. My ser was perhaps the first girl to study outside our village,” she says.
The attitude in and around her village has changed now. “There is a woman athlete from Dhani Mahu who is a relative of mine. People in my village don’t judge you what you wear. Once I started winning medals, the attitude in my family and the village changed.”

While at work, Anita is often asked to ass in cases related to the Prevention of Children in Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. “Police work is very different from what I was used to when I was a wrestler and being a sports adminrator will be a new challenge. But I am ready for it as I have been a wrestler for two decades and know how the system works and what wrestlers need to excel.”
On the mat she has won against expectations and made comebacks. Despite not wrestling for nearly two years when she became a mother and becoming overweight, Anita returned and became a national champion and South Asian Games gold medall. Her husband Navin Sherawat and mother-in-law backed her comeback bid.
“I got married in 2015. Two years later, we became parents. I weighed 95 kg. My husband pushed me to return to wrestling because he knew I had the desire. He sorted out my diet and took care of my needs. My mother-in-law looked after my son Aryaveer. I won gold medals in the 65kg category after making a comeback. I know what it takes to fight the odds.”