Bengaluru: As India won the maiden kho kho World Cup, Karnataka, from where there was one player each in the men’s and women’s national teams, had its own moment in the sun. But the glory was short-lived as the two players accused the state government of insult and discrimination.
Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah Friday felicitated M.K. Gautham and Chaitra B. and, then, announced Rs 5 lakh for them, but soon after, the players rejected the cash prize.
The development has left the Karnataka government red-faced. The players and the state kho kho association have also accused the administration of “discrimination” against indigenous sports.
Siddaramaiah took over the sports portfolio after B. Nagendra was forced to step down in June last year over allegations of corruption.
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“We met the CM at 2.30 pm, and in just two minutes of interaction, the CM announced a cash prize of Rs 5 lakh. At that time, we could not reject the offer on his face…so, afterwards, we spoke to our president and decided to reject this. Other states give Rs 2 crore and class ‘A’ jobs, so why does Karnataka not do the same?” Gautham told reporters Saturday in Bengaluru.
The development comes when allegations of the government’s excessive focus on a handful of sports while turning a blind eye to others are mounting.
The state kho kho association has evoked Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s emphasis on indigenous sports to highlight the derelict state of indigenous sports, such as kho kho, in Karnataka.
‘Karnataka government not responding to us’
Almost all sporting-related decisions in Karnataka go through the state’s Olympics association, headed by Congress MLC K. Govindaraj for over two decades. A close aide of Siddaramaiah, he is currently the CM’s political secretary.
ThePrint called Govindraj for his comment on the kho kho row but has not received a response.
Lokeshwara, the president of Karnataka State Kho Kho Association and vice president of Kho Kho Federation of India, accused the state of discrimination. He said a game, such as basketball, got Rs 10 crore annually, but kho kho did not get “even a single rupee” in the last 10 years.
He added that the government brought the kho kho association under the umbrella of the Olympic association without consulting the sporting body.
“The felicitation cannot be returned. But the prize money that has been given—which is not correct,” Lokeshwara said.
He added that several state governments, such as Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Odisha and others, set aside Rs 10-25 crore this financial year (FY25) for promoting kho kho in their respective states.
He also said that in kho kho competitions, Karnataka, over the last 40 years, has consistently been in the top-3 among states.
“Why does the state government not want to promote kho kho?” he asked.
Gautham said he was also part of the kho kho gold medal-winning team in the 2019 South Asian Games.
“At that time, the Maharashtra government provided winning members with Class B jobs and Rs 50 lakh. Our government did not provide anything for us. With that certificate, I applied for jobs through a central government scheme and got a postman’s job. That’s the only thing that has happened,” Gautham said.
In its 2024-25 budget, the Karnataka government set aside Rs 3-6 crore prize money for medal winners in last year’s Paris Olympics. On the other hand, athletes who bag medals in Asian and Commonwealth games get Rs 15-35 lakh.
“We do not get any support. For national games, Maharashtra announced Rs 7 lakh prize money and grade ‘B’ jobs. But the government has not responded to us,” Chaitra B. from the women’s gold medal-winning team told reporters in Bengaluru Saturday.
(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)
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