Junior shooters suspended on sexual harassment charges

New Delhi: Two shooters have been suspended by the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) on charges of sexual harassment during the recently-concluded International Junior Shooting Championship in Suhl, Germany.

After the competition in Suhl, a female shotgun shooter has lodged a complaint against two of her male counterparts following which the NRAI had suspended the duo pending inquiry. The two male shooters in question were earlier part of the squad for an upcoming shotgun championship in Finland, but have been withdrawn after the complaint was filed against them. "A complaint has been received in this regard and the NRAI has already barred them from competing in the tournament in Finland. All the files regarding the complaints have been received," a top NRAI official said. All the three shooters were part of the junior Indian team that participated in Suhl earlier this month. A tournament for budding talent, the Indians showed their mettle in Suhl by winning an impressive tally of eight medals, two gold, one silver and five bronze. The complaint has been forwarded to the NRAI`s athlete committee headed by former shooter Morad Ali Khan. One of the accused is said to be a junior national champion in double trap, who was also part of the senior team at the Acapulco World Cup. The incident for sure has taken the sheen off the Indian youngsters` impressive show in the tournament. PTI