New Delhi, Aug 09: Reversing its early decision, the Arjuna awards committee today decided to recommend athlete K M Beenamol for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, dropping shooter Anjali Bhagwat as a contender for the award. The committee had earlier recommended names of Beenamol and Anjali for the prestigious award which, however, was not accepted by the government.
As per the government guidelines, the Rajiv Khel Ratna is to be given to only one player. In exceptional cases, the award can be shared by sportspersons belonging to same discipline, as was earlier done in the case of Yatchsmen Homi D Motivala and P K Garg in 1993-94.
The decision to drop Anjali and retain Beenamol for the award was taken at the emergency meeting of the committee, whose earlier recommendations on Rajiv Khel Ratna and Arjuna awards were not accepted by the government.
The committee had also recommended 21 sports persons for Arjuna awards as against 16, including one disabled, stipulated in the guidelines.
The government had asked the committee to reconsider its recommendations, stick to the guidelines and prune the list from 21 to 16.
Bureau Report