Jammu, Jun 23: Alleging irregularities in the outstanding sportspersons recruitment, former athletes, along with members of the Bar Association of Jammu (BAJ), outstanding sportspersons and the civil society, Tuesday sought a review of the list recently released by the government.
Former athlete Ranjodh Singh, flanked by Vice President of the Bar Association of Jammu (BAJ) Advocate Baldev Singh, outstanding sportspersons, and civil society members, addressing a press conference here, alleged that the recently released provisional list for the recruitment of Outstanding Sportspersons (2026) in Jammu and Kashmir has created serious concerns among athletes and the public.
“Many sports persons feel that the list is not fair, not transparent, and does not properly follow sports rules,” they said and highlighted that the non-Olympic Sport given equal or higher priority, the sport Pencak Silat is not part of the Olympic Games, Asian Games, or Commonwealth Games but despite this, players from this sport have been placed equal to or even above athletes from Olympic sports like Athletics and Boxing.
“Olympic sports have tougher competition and higher standards but non-Olympic sports appear to have been given similar weightage,” they said adding that the athletes who worked hard in globally recognized sports feel ignored, adding, “It has been reported that few candidates from the same non-Olympic sport have been selected in the Gazetted Officer category and it is also being alleged that these candidates are close relatives of the officials in the sports department.”
Asserting if true, they stated that this raises concerns about favoritism and conflict of interest and expressed that government jobs must be given on merit, not “connections”.
The members also alleged that some candidates who played in direct international invitational events have also been included in the list, and the events were reportedly not officially recognized or sponsored by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Government of India.
“Around 73 candidates from one district, linked to Dragon Boat events, have reportedly been included under Kayaking and Canoeing. Dragon Boat is not an Olympic sport, and its inclusion under Kayaking and Canoeing creates confusion and raises questions about fairness and procedure,” they said.
“There are serious concerns regarding education criteria, as matric pass and Ph.D holders are reportedly placed in the same job level, while 12th pass candidates from non-Olympic sports have been included in Gazetted posts. This discourages educated sportspersons who balance higher studies along with sports,” they said.
The addressed that this recruitment process was delayed for five years, due to which many genuine sportspersons have already suffered, adding, “delays and irregularities damage the morale of genuine athletes who dedicate years of hard work to bring pride to the state and nation.”
“Instead of strengthening Olympic sports, this list appears to favor certain non-Olympic disciplines and sports quota jobs are meant to encourage excellence and reward real achievement — not to misuse loopholes,” they claimed.
The present provisional list weakens Olympic sports, creates doubts about fairness. damages trust in the system and hurts genuine sportspersons, they said.
The athletes and the BAJ members, however, demanded immediate review and correction of the provisional list, transparent categorization based on Olympic, Asian Games, and Commonwealth Games recognition, independent inquiry into allegations of favouritism and conflict of interest.
“Transparent and merit-based recruitment as per national sports policies must be released because the issue is not just about jobs but about justice, fairness, and protecting the future of sports in Jammu and Kashmir,” they added.
However, the final list of athletes selected under the sports quota policy released on June 10 earlier this month has now triggered a protest.
Notably, the Department of Youth Services and Sports had received a whopping over 200 objections from around 95 applicants and non-applicants after the publication of the provisional selection list in February this year. (UNI)
