Olympic gold medallist Abhinav Bindra, on Tuesday lashed out at the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) for not coming to the aid of shooters, who were stranded at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport after their shooting equipment was denied clearance by the customs department for several hours.
The shooters were left stranded at the airport for more than 12 hours on their return from the World Cup in Cyprus and an international shooting competition in Czech Republic.
Criticising the incident, Bindra put out a series of tweets, asserting that the shooters are the ambassadors of the country and questioned if the Indian cricketers will ever be treated in the same way.
Saddened to hear that the National Shooting Team is detained at The IGI Airport with the customs refusing to clear their guns. 1/3
— Abhinav Bindra (@Abhinav_Bindra) May 9, 2017
“They are our countries ambassadors and should not be treated like this. Would this ever happen to our cricket team?,” he asked.
They are our countries ambassadors and should not be treated like this. Would this ever happen to our cricket team ? 2/3
— Abhinav Bindra (@Abhinav_Bindra) May 9, 2017
“Chatted with a few athletes and the lack of support coming through from the national federation is pathetic. @RaninderSingh @TheNrai,” Bindra said.
Bindra, who has been recently appointed by the government as the national observer for shooting, said that the official team manager left the athletes “to fend for themselves”.
Chatted with a few athletes and the lack of support coming through from the national federation is pathetic. @RaninderSingh @TheNrai
— Abhinav Bindra (@Abhinav_Bindra) May 9, 2017
The official team manager of the shotgun team left this morning leaving the athletes to fend for them selves.
— Abhinav Bindra (@Abhinav_Bindra) May 9, 2017