- Friday, April 26, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
A MAN was arrested from Roshnabad area of Haridwar district of North Indian state of Uttarakhand for allegedly making a mockery of and uttering casteist remarks against the family of Vandana Katariya, a member of the women’s national hockey team.
Sources in the police on Thursday (5) said two men allegedly danced and burst firecrackers outside the residence of Katariya after India lost to Argentina in the semi-final of the Tokyo Olympics after taking an early lead.
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When some members of Katariya’s family came out hearing the noise, the two men allegedly hurled casteist remarks against them, saying the team had lost because it had too many Dalit players in it. A heated argument followed between Katariya’s family and the two men. Her brother then filed a complaint, a police officer said.
One of the two men, identified as Vijay Pal, was later arrested and booked in connection with the incident under Section 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace) of the Indian Penal Code and the SC/ST Act, the officer added. The other was yet to be caught, he said.
Katariya has been one of the most prolific performers of the Indian side in this Olympics with four goals, which include a hat-trick in a group match against South Africa – a first by an Indian woman hockey player. The women’s hockey team finished fourth at Tokyo, their joint-best in history.
Katariya, 29, started her career at the age of 14 when she was picked for the Indian junior team. She made it to the national team in 2010 and was part of the team that won the bronze at the junior world cup in Germany in 2013. She was India’s top scorer in that tournament with five goals. In 2014, she received the Hockey India Player of the Year Award. Katariya, who is known for her agility on the field, has been a key member of the Indian women’s hockey team that has played in the Commonwealth Games in Scotland, Rio Olympics, Hockey World League and Asian Champions Trophy.
