Wrestler Satender Malik assaults referee at CWG 2022 trials, gets life ban

In an incident that has rocked the Indian wrestling community, Services' wrestler Satender Malik has been slapped a life ban after launching a physical assault on referee Jagbir Singh after losing the 125 kg final during the Commonwealth Games 2022 trials in New Delhi on Tuesday.

In the final bout, the Air Force wrestler was leading 3-0 when in the last 18 seconds, Mohit effected a 'takedown' move and pushed Satender out of the mat for another point. However, referee Virender Malik refused to grant the two points to Mohit and awarded only one point for the pushout. 

An upset Mohit challenged the decision. The jury of the bout, Satyadev Malik, excused himself from arriving at a decision to avoid any partiality since he and Satender hailed from the same village, Mokhra.

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Senior referee Jagbir Singh was asked to look into the challenge, and with the help of TV replays, he ruled that Mohit should be given three points.

The score levelled at 3-3 and remained so till the end. Eventually, Mohit was declared the winner on the criteria since he had scored the last point of the bout.

An irked Satender lost his cool and walked across Mat A, where Ravi Dahiya and Aman were locked in the 57kg final and launched a scathing attack on Jagbir. 

Satender first abused the senior referee before slapping him. Jagbir lost his balance and fell to the ground. He tried retaliating but was overpowered by the heavyweight wrestler, leaving fans inside the KD Jadhav Hall at the IG Stadium appalled. 

The fight scene took place in front of WFI President Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, sitting on the dais. "We have imposed a life ban on Satender Malik. The decision was taken by the WFI president," WFI's assistant secretary Vinod Tomar told PTI.

"The referees officiating that bout will also be called for an explanation that why points were not awarded to Mohit when it was clear that the takedown move was clean. Why did they let the situation go out of hand," Tomar added.

Meanwhile,  a visibly shaken Jagbir, who has been a Class One referee since 2013, said, "I had no inkling that he would do something like that."

"I had nothing to do with this bout. I had officiated the 97kg and 65kg finals and gave the ruling only after I was asked to do it. It's up to WFI what action it wants to take against him," the referee added.

(With inputs from PTI)

• Wrestling
• Commonwealth Games
• CWG 2022