Renaming of khel ratna award is petty politics: Sena

Accuses BJP-led Centre of demeaning Rajiv Gandhi’s sacrifice

The Shiv Sena and the BJP traded barbs on Monday over the renaming of the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award — the country’s highest sporting honour — as the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award after the former accused the BJP-led Centre of petty politicking with this move. “Major Dhyan Chand could have been honoured without insulting the sacrifice made by late [Congress Prime Minister] Rajiv Gandhi. Renaming the award thus is a ‘political sport’ and not a public sentiment… But it appears that our country has lost this tradition and culture. Today, Dhyan Chand, too must be feeling the same way,” said an edit which appeared in the Sena mouthpiece Saamana. Pointing out that an award in Major Dhyan Chand’s memory already exists, the Sena, once an ally of the BJP in Maharashtra, said it was merely indulging in political games in the spirit of revenge and malice.