The Bengaluru Open, a popular professional tennis tournament in the state, opened to much fanfare on February 20. As many sports enthusiasts flocked in to watch the matches over the week, for one tennis lover, the experience was anything but celebratory. Sunil Jain, a chartered accountant with a locomotor disability, had a harrowing time trying to attend the tournament, following which he sat in protest at the entrance of the stadium on February 26, the closing day of the Open. The reason? The stadium was not disability-friendly.
Sunil Jain, who is also the Founder, Trustee, and Chief Enabler of the Indian Wheelchair Tennis Tour, had previously been to the Karnataka State Lawn Tennis Association (KSLTA) stadium where the Bengaluru Open takes place and each time, he had to face accessibility problems like the lack of a ramp for wheelchair users. During his previous visit to the stadium to watch a match, there was no wheelchair access to the sitting gallery. He was offered help to be carried along with a wheelchair, which he reluctantly accepted, knowing that it would make him feel dependent. After the match, Sunil met with the KSLTA Joint Secretary Sunil Yajman and requested that he must work to make the stadium accessible. “Yajman orally committed to doing the same, but even after multiple follow-ups, there was no response,” Sunil told TNM.
Sunil approached KSLTA again during the stadium renovation in November 2022. This time he met the KSLTA Secretary Maheshwar Rao with a formal request to make the sitting gallery accessible. Maheshwar assured him that the needful would be done, but again, there was no response despite multiple follow-ups.
As the Bengaluru Open 2023 approached, Sunil sent an email seeking information on accessibility and booking details. The ticket booking link was shared by the organisers on WhatsApp, but there was no mention of accessibility. When he enquired, he was asked to contact KSLTA to get the required information. On the day of the event, Sunil reached out to the members concerned of KSLTA, but they did not have updates about anything.
Despite this, Sunil arrived at the venue on February 26, the closing day of the tournament, hoping that things would be in order. There were no clear signboards for accessible parking, and it took him 30 minutes to reach the designated gate. The ticketing agencies had no clue about accessibility and insisted on lifting Sunil to his seat. "No one can force help on me. I demanded access to the seat for which I got the ticket,” he said.
Things took a turn for the worse when other members at KSLTA, started pressurising Sunil to take help and suggested that he be ‘put in some place’. "I refuse to be treated like an object or victim who needs any support or help. I want people and organisations to do what they are supposed to do,” Sunil asserted.
Sunil Jain outside the KSLTA gate.
Sunil sat in protest near the entrance of the gate for hours from 5.45 to 9.50 pm. “Not a single office-bearer of KSLTA deemed it necessary to acknowledge the mess that they had created,” he said. "It is disappointing that such a major tournament cannot even provide basic accessibility for people with disabilities," he added. Sunil hopes that his ordeal will spur the KSLTA into action and make the stadium accessible for everyone, regardless of their abilities.
He further demanded a written apology from KSLTA and action to sort out the accessibility issues at the stadium. “KSLTA is legally bound to take care of these aspects without anyone having to educate them or request them. KSLTA owes me a written explanation and apology. They must get this accessibility issue sorted in the next couple of months,” he said.
TNM tried to reach out to KSLTA authorities but did not receive any response. This story will be updated as and when we hear from them.