Delhi Golf Club President Major Ravinder Singh Bedi (retired) on Monday dismissed golfer Rashid Khan’s claim that the club has been discriminating against him due to his humble background. Khan and nine other caddie-turned-golfers were made to spend over three hours at the Tughlaq Road police station in Lutyens Delhi on Saturday after an argument over using the club’s driving range.
Speaking to IANS, Bedi presented a different picture andsaid that Khan and the other golfers’ repeated attempts at “causingdisrepute to the club” and causing ruckus “virtually on a weeklybasis” had led getting them banned by the general committee in January.
“All along, he (Khan) has been getting playing rightsin this club for which he didn’t pay a penny. He earns in crores but heinsisted on playing rights which we granted him. No club or institution cansurvive if we allow hooliganism and indiscipline,” he said.
While Khan had said in his tweet on Saturday that he hadcalled the police after not being allowed to enter into the club, Bedi saidthat it was the club authorities that called the police first.
“They (Khan and the other golfers who were arrested) camewith their bags and said that we want to go and play. We will pay the greenfees. The guard said that your entry into the club is banned so there is noquestion of you being allowed to go in. They said that if we are not allowedin, we will sit here and not allow any traffic to go. Then, we called thepolice…
“I personally called the DCP. Our security staff calledthe police and all these will be reflected in the records,” he guaranteed.
The incident is part of a long standing feud between Khanand the DGC. While the 28-year-old two-time Asian Champion had stated that hewas being discriminated because of his humble background, Bedi said that he andthe other golfers involved in this wanted to project this image and garnersympathy.
“Khan’s aim is that he wants to gain membership withthe club,” said the DGC President. “There are some 3,000 or 4,000(people) in the waiting list of members and that goes to anywhere between 30and 35 years. He has not even applied and wants membership. He doesn’t state asmuch elsewhere but this is what he has been looking for. Let him apply and waitfor his turn,” he said.
Bedi said that Rashid was “picked up as a boy” andthe DGC has helped him through various programmes to reach where he is now.Agencies