Sportsperson Anju Bobby George has submitted a complaint to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan alleging that Sports Minister EP Jayarajan had harassed her and other members of the Kerala Sports Council. Minister Jayarajan had earned notoriety in the past few days when he declared on the occasion of Muhammed Ali’s death that it was a great loss for Kerala, as he had won many medals for the state.
Anju, who is the president of the Kerala Sports Council at present, said that the Minister had threatened her and other members of the Council when it had assembled for the first meeting with the Sports Minister. However, she told The News Minute, the Sports Minister accused the Council members of all being supporters of the opposition party, and also allegedly threatened them of dire consequences since the LDF had come to power.
Pointing to the fact that Anju had travelled from Bengaluru to Kerala by air, he said that this showed that all the members of the Sports Council are corrupt. However, Anju clarified that air travel had been sanctioned for her by a Government Order issued by the Finance Ministry.
“When a minister is appointed as the Head of a Department, he should have some minimum knowledge about the working of the department,” she said, adding that she is not greedy for government positions or power.
She further said that the minister had dismissed all recent transfer orders issued by the Sports Council, and when Anju had brought up the matter saying that such a sudden cancellation would affect many lives and careers, the Minister again threatened her.
Anju met the Chief Minister in person on the issue, and was given an assurance by the latter that suitable action would be taken on the issue.
Anju won the bronze medal in Long Jump at the 2003 World Championships in Althletics in Paris and the gold at the International Association of Athletic Federation (IAAF) in 2005.