16-year-old national-level basketball player, another teen killed in court accidents in Haryana

Hardik’s father, Sandeep Rathee, said his son, a three-time junior Under-14 nationals medalist, had dreams of playing for India.

“He had also come closer to making it to the Indian U-16 team earlier. Since our village has a lot of basketball players, the sports nursery was allotted here. After repeated requests, the basketball equipment including the poles were not provided. His younger brother, Pratik, too is a national-level player. How should I convince my wife Nirmala to send Pratik to train at the same court?” he told The Indian Express.

Another athlete from Lakhan Majra, Rohit Rathi, echoed concerns over equipment. He alleged that a tender had been issued to install a new post, but officials who inspected the site failed to act even though it was visibly weak.

Haryana Sports Minister Gaurav Gautam said the Rohtak district sports officer had been suspended and that activities at the sports nursery had been halted. He said strict action would follow after a high-level inquiry and promised measures to ensure such tragedies don’t recur.

Just two days earlier, in neighbouring Bahadurgarh district, another teenage basketball player died in a similar incident. Aman, 15, suffered injuries to his stomach and back after a basketball pole fell on him while training at the Shaheed Brigadier Hoshiar Singh Stadium on Sunday.

He died late on Monday at the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (PGIMS) in Rohtak. His family alleged that the hospital had delayed treatment, resulting in his death.

The Director General of the Haryana Sports Department, Sanjeev Verma, described both incidents as serious and unfortunate, acknowledging that two promising athletes had died due to dilapidated equipment.

In a statement Wednesday, he said: “If there is dilapidated sports infrastructure at the sports complexes, they should be stopped for the sportspersons. These instruments should be immediately repaired with the funds available with the District Sports Council.”

Aman’s father, Suresh Kumar, told The Indian Express: “All we wanted was to see him play for Haryana and India one day. It was just a start for him.”

“Aman had won a gold and two silvers in inter-school competitions last week only and wanted to play at the state level. He was training alone on Sunday when the basketball post fell on him,” said his cousin Rohit Kumar.

“We later took him from Civil hospital to PGIMS Rohtak where there was much delay in the treatment before he was put on a ventilator. On Monday, they told us that Aman is no more. If there was no delay on Sunday at PGIMS Rohtak, Ann would have been saved. Earlier in 2022, there was another incident at the same stadium when the basketball pole fell on a trainee and he died,” he alleged.

Deaths caused by negligence: Hooda

Leader of Opposition and former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, meanwhile, said that his son, MP Deepender Hooda, had donated Rs 12.3 lakh and another Rs 6.2 lakh for the Lakhan Majra ground, but all the money remained on paper, with nothing happening on the ground.

Demanding a probe, he said: “This is not a simple accident or a normal death, but a death caused by sheer government negligence. Hardik was a national-level player with a bright future, having already signed with a club in the United States. Similarly, Aman, just 15 years old, was also a promising player. The untimely deaths of these two young players have shocked the entire state.”