The Ministry of Railways has finally accepted the resignation of wrestlers Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia, who recently switched to Congress for the Haryana assembly elections. This decision was made on Monday after they joined Congress on Friday; while contesting for the election, Phogat had been issued a ticket from the Julana assembly constituency.
Most memorably, the Railways did not insist on the regular 90-day resignation period as it had been with other employees, thereby letting the two athletes go full steam into their political careers immediately. This waiver was even more important since there were doubts about Phogat’s ability to participate in the elections due to the notice period that has to be adhered to by all government employees.
According to the order given by the Northern Railway management on September 9, the resignation tendered by Vinesh Phogat on September 6 was accepted by the authority in its letter. This prompt action has created the opportunity for the wrestlers to engage in the forthcoming electoral process.
Before its resignations, the Northern Railway served to show cause notices on Phogat and Punia after meeting Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the Congress party in the Lok Sabha, to join the party. The issuance of these notices was in compliance with the necessary formalities, which required compliance with the service rules of the government employees. After issuing both the show-cause notices, the wrestlers preferred to quit their jobs at the Railways.
While entering the new phase of their political careers in Haryana, both the new politicians Phogat and Punia… would definitely incorporate their established well-built activism for athletes along with representation of athletes’ rights that is overwhelming in the political theatre.
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