Kunjarani Devi

In 2001, the entire country was shocked to learn that Kinjarani Devi, a premier weightlifter and an Arjuna Award winner, had tested positive for anabolic steriods. As is the case with most athletes caught in a doping scandal, Kunjarani Devi denied any intentional usage of the banned substances. Sadly, this was not an isolated doping incident in Indian sports, and there have been other international-level athletes who have been found guilty too!

Most recently, Indian wrestlers Rajiv Tomar, Sumit Kumar, Masuam Khatri and Gursharanpreet Kaur and shot-putter Saurav Vij tested positive for the banned stimulant methylhexaneamine during the Commonwealth Games. In almost every case, the involved parties--ahtletes, coaches and governing bodies--ended up pointing fingers at each other instead of taking measures to remove this scourge from Indian sports.