MEERUT: Towing the line of many Haryana sportspersons, Baghpat wrestler and Arjun awardee Shokinder Tomar has announced returning of his medal if the controversial farm laws are now withdrawn.
“If the government does not listen to the just demand of farmers, then I will also have to return my award,” he said on Tuesday.
A resident of Baghpat’s Malakpur village, Tomar had bagged a silver at the 2002 Manchester Commonwealth Games and received the Arjuna Award in 2003-04. He represented India in the men’s freestyle 120 kg category at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.
Speaking to TOI, 38-year-old Shokinder said, “If I got the Arjuna Award, it is because of my family’s resources which is primarily farming. So, returning the award becomes a compulsion or me. I hope the government doesn't bring us to this extent that we have to return our medals. The onus is on the government to decide what it wants.”
Last week Haryana-based former Indian basketball player and Arjuna Award winner Sajjan Singh Cheema contacted several awardees and claimed support of at least 30 farmers who decided to return their awards in support of the protesting farmers.