Reportedly India off-spinner harbhajan singh on saturday cleared the air on why his name was withdrawn by the punjab government from the Khel Ratna award shortlist, stating that he wasn't eligible for the honour. Harbhajan clarified that an athlete's performance over the last 3 years has to be taken into consideration for him/her to be shortlisted for the award. The 40 year old has not played for india since 2016.
"Dear friends, I have been flooded with calls as to why punjab Govt withdrew my name from Khel Ratna nominations. The truth is I am not eligible for Khel Ratna which primarily considers the international performances in last three years. "The punjab Govt is not at fault here as they have rightly withdrawn my name. Would urge my friends in media not to speculate. Thank you and regards," Harbhajan messaged. Last year Harbhajan's nomination for Khel Ratna award had been rejected by the Ministry of youth Affairs and sports (MYAS) on grounds that his documents reached late.
Moreover Harbhajan had requested punjab sports minister rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi's intervention in the matter and the minister subsequently ordered a probe into the alleged delay in sending his documents to the centre. But this time Bhajji claims that he himself asked the punjab government not to nominate him for the prestigious award. He added "Lot of confusion & speculation regarding my nomination for Khel Ratna so let me clarify. Yes last year the nomination was sent late but this year I only asked punjab Govt to withdraw my nomination because I don’t fall under the 3 year eligibility criteria. Don’t speculate further”.
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