Shooters, officials declare ceasefire

NEW DELHI, May 6: CEASEFIRE. That was the outcome after the one-and-a-half-hour meeting between shooters Jaspal Rana and Ashok Pandit one o...

NEW DELHI, May 6: CEASEFIRE. That was the outcome after the one-and-a-half-hour meeting between shooters Jaspal Rana and Ashok Pandit one one side and SAI officials and NRAI on the other side.

The conflict between the shooters and Manmeet Singh Goindi, Stadia Administrator, Dr Karni Singh Ranges, was solved amicably. Mohd Aslam Khan, a well-known multi-discipline sportsman in his days, now a vice president in the Indian Olympic Association, was the mediator in the absence of Randhir Singh. Randhir, who was entrusted the job of bringing peace between the two parties, but had to leave for Dehradun today morning due to a bereavement in the family.

After the meeting, Khan said, “We don’t deny there was no problem. There was a good meeting and everything has been sorted out.” None of the parties was willing to divulge details of the meeting since peace has been restored. Khan added that “everybody (both parties) should win. We have done our bit to sort it out.” SAI Director General MN Buch and National Rifle Association of India Secretary General Baljeet Singh Sethi were also present in the meeting.

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Jaspal Rana said he would be back for training at the ranges from Wednesday, and Ashok Pandit, left for Mumbai in the evening.

After all the action in the last two months, which began with Rana abstaining from practice and not shooting the national trial last week, the end was a bit of anti-climax. There were no fireworks according to those who attended the meeting. But, then, it would have been much more appropriate had matters been sorted out much earlier. “We wouldn’t like to talk about the past, since it’s over,” said Buch.

Regarding the other controversial issue of excluding Jaspal, Subhash Rana, Sushma Rana, Sonika Manon, and Shilpi Singh from the Delhi squad for the National Games, there was a new development. The shooters have expressed willingness to represent Delhi and the National Rifle Association is going to take up the matter with the Delhi State Rifle Association and also the Delhi Olympic Association.

The DSRA had named the team yesterday, where the names of these five shooters do not figure. As of today, there is every possibility of the team being changed. It will definitely be a hard decision on those originally named, but could miss the bus. That, anyway, isn’t new in Indian sport!