On April 11, the tribal-dominated Dindori district of Madhya Pradesh woke up to the news that India won the World Junior Kabaddi Championship in March.
In a cricket-crazy nation, the fact that India defeated reigning champions Iran to lift the trophy did not occupy much news space, however, in Dindori the late realisation ushered in euphoria as Sachin Kushram, a local, was reportedly part of the team.
Former state Cabinet Minister and Dindori MLA Omkar Markam showered praise on Sachin while district Collector Vikas Mishra described him as a "genius". A photograph of Sachin, with the winners' medal around his neck and the trophy in his hand, went viral on social media.
However, there was a catch. Sachin was not actually a part of India's World Cup-winning squad, and the viral photograph was morphed.
Sachin, 19, arrived at Dindori on April 12 just a few hours after informing his father, teachers, and well-wishers that he scripted history in Iran. Greeted by a rousing reception, Sachin was even accompanied by Mr Markam in his own car to his native village Rusa as the sitting MLA wanted to be a part of the celebrations.
Meanwhile, Dindori-based cricketer and lawyer Abhinav Katare thought something was amiss. Mr Katare scanned through dozens of footage from the tournament, probed the viral photo and went threw news reports to come to the realisation that Sachin was not part of India's squad that played the tournament from February 26 till March 5.
"I watched the entire video of the final match but could not find Sachin Kushram anywhere. I then scanned the Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India (AKFI) website, but couldn't find anything to establish that Sachin Kushram was representing any of the Indian states. Importantly, no player from Madhya Pradesh could be found in the entire junior national squad in Iran," Mr Katare said.
Advertisement"Then I checked the authenticity of the picture shared by Sachin Kushram in which he is seen holding the junior world championship trophy. I inquired about it from Facebook and Instagram and came to know that it was an edited picture in which the face of the actual world championship winner team's member Yogesh Dahiya (native of Sonepat-Haryana) was changed to fit in Sachin Kushram's face," he added.
Dindori district police superintendent Sanjiv Kumar Sinha said, "We've received a complaint from local advocate Abhinav Katare on April 13, about the allegedly fake story of local youth being part of the Indian Kabaddi team which won the junior world title in March. Entire matter is being investigated."
AdvertisementSachin's father Manoj Kushram, a government school teacher, alleges a conspiracy to frame his son.
"My son is innocent, possibly there is a gang that could have hatched the entire conspiracy and got him trapped," he said.
AdvertisementDindori Collector Vikas Mishra said the police have received complaints and a detailed probe has been initiated for appropriate legal action.
