Women Hockey’s ‘Sex Scandal’: My perspective

A television channel published three photographs of Indian Women Hockey Team’s Videographer, showing him in compromising position with a semiclad lady. It claimed the lady in the image is a prostitute.

The channel claimed the photos were taken during the recent visit of Indian women team to China (India had a Japan-China tour in the April this year, and played 3 and 4 Test Matches, respectively) and that the women hockey affairs is murky.

The manner the issue was portrayed in the prime time news implicitly suggests that the many players in the team have had, and have, complaints vis-à-vis sexual harassment.

We also understand a women hockey player in the last month has complained to the Sports Ministry, Government of India, of her not being selected as the team management expected sexual favour for selection.

Though a section of judicious watchers wish to give more importance to the timing of the telecast (on the eve of Hockey India election) I don’t attach any importance to that angle.

First thing first.

In India, the type of social values being in vogue, mere accusation of sexual favour is sufficient to kill a person’s reputation in the society. Therefore, such issues become life and death for those concerned.

Practically speaking nobody bothers to know the truth, all are happy to live on hearsay and gossip, legal delivery system is so prolonged that it almost copy book case of delayed justice is denied justice.

Therefore, it is imperative to understand and underline the fact that even if the images shown can stand a scrutiny it needs to be established (a.): Is it an individual’s adventure or the whole team management on tour was like this, (b.): Is it right to colour the whole team based on a individual’s behaviour and (c.): Has this incident and the letter written by a player to the Ministry any link?

I have seen women teams on foreign soils more than any other Indian journalists in India.

I can vouch-safe for one thing: Present coach MK Kaushik is a disciplinarian, unwavering, and expects and exercises the same virtues from his support staff. He would have never brought those successful feats (Asia Cup wins, CWG fianls last time etc ) without these qualities. It is therefore unfortunate that he has been put in such an awkward situation wherein the whole team management’s behaviour is nationally looked upon with suspicion.

Second Point: My sympathies are with both the women hockey team as a whole and the team management in particular.

Women hockey sustains on poor base, players coming from 3, 4 pockets, the one thing that it does not need at this juncture is a bad publicity that will discourage girls’ parents to send their wards to hockey.

Women hockey’s achievements and feats, which are many, hardly get the type of visibility that it deserves; but this time Selection Vs Sexual Favours or joyous trip of a support staff will provide stuff for rumour mills and to wider audience, this will place women hockey as a whole in bad light.

At such a time the team has to play in the Asian Champions Trophy (next week), World Cup (next month) and Commonwealth Games (a month after World Cup), this national news is going to affect its preparedness both mentally and physically.

Therefore, I wonder why, and regret when, the women sport is passing through such bad pass as it does right now.

I wish and pray the team management and the women hockey players have enough courage to come out of this trauma.

Third Point: Indian women hockey team is selected by increasingly assertive ‘Selection Committee’ that consisted of stalwart Olympian like BP Govinda, ubiquitous Ajit Pal Singh, Col. Balbir Singh and women members Sita Gossain and Madhu Yadav who is also Manager, who accompanied the team in the tour in question. The women manager stays with the team during the camp, tour and practice, and is eye and ear of the Hockey India. Therefore, technically, administratively and for all practical purpose, no individual can select or discard a player. It is more so with chief coaches of India whose wings are often clipped by many (a. Selection Committee, b. Hockey India c.Vested Interests mostly one or two from the support staff) others. This is true of both men and women hockey.

Therefore, a girl being selected on sexual favour given or denied is one issue that needs to be taken with a pinch of salt.

Two years ago, a women hockey goalkeeper from Chandigarh even went to court before fading away.

I have personally come across situations where some girls used to hint such things, and often found out these are their habitual orientations, or knee jerk reaction to some imagined injustice meted out to them like one time drop or not playing in the playing eleven.

As Chak De India! Film made it known, the issues in the women hockey are far more complex and confusing that one can normally visualize.

There are incidents in the past even the Federation used the vexed ‘sex’ to get its unfavourable coaches removed!

The IWHF in the past, at least on one occasion, got its Olympian manager (it is unfortunate in Indian hockey annals a section of former Olympians will do anything the Federation ask them to do) – she said me once she was forced to – complain about the misconduct of coach (meaning misbehaviour with girls) to government of India just to get rid of a coach who was no longer in the good books of it.

Some coaches also did the same to get rid of male support staff.

A successful women coach in the northern part of India has another habit. Whenever his trainees were not selected, he will call up press and will try to plant x was not selected because the chief coach is in ‘aashiki’ (in love with) with the selected player.

If anyone cares to go through the archives of Sports Ministry, one can lay hand on letters written by some players and anonymous persons complaining of sexual harassment.

Therefore, bringing sex into the scheme of things in women hockey is not first time, nor it going to be last.

I expect everyone connected with hockey to exercise maximum caution and restraint before jumping to conclusion.

A proper inquiry, prompt action against the mis-doers on time are the prime requisites to save women hockey from the danger it has fallen right now.