Indian Hockey Official Sent Home From Asian Games Following Harassment Allegation

The Indian women’s hockey team defeated China on Friday to claim the Asian Games title for only the second time and the first since 1982, but the victory was overshadowed by the expulsion of the delegation’s umpires manager, Gurinder Singh Sangha, over allegations of harassment and misbehaviour (The Hindu).

Sangha, a physical education instructor at a government school in Jalandhar, was sent home from the Games after tournament officials received complaints from a foreign umpire officiating at the competition as well as from hotel staff where officials were staying. A senior official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed Sangha had already left and said there were complaints of him repeatedly harassing foreign officials. Hotel staff also alleged he showed them immoral videos and threatened a police complaint, prompting tournament authorities to act (The Hindu).

The episode echoes a previous incident during last year’s Hockey India League in Ranchi, when a woman umpire formally complained to Hockey India against Sangha’s behaviour and physical harassment. A three-member committee was constituted on the directions of secretary general Bholanath Singh, but the matter was not pursued. Asunta Lakra, a former India captain who was herself a complainant against Singh in a separate matter, served on that committee and said Sangha was removed from the HIL at the time. She added that Hockey India should not have assigned him to a prestigious tournament given the past instance. The umpire who filed that complaint has since quit the profession and moved abroad (The Hindu).

Officials in Hangzhou have declined to comment publicly on the specifics of the current case. The development marks another controversy for Indian hockey on the international stage even as the women’s team secured a historic gold.