A rousing state reception was accorded by the Haryana government to the Rio Olympisc bronze medallist Sakshi Malik after she arrived on Wednesday morning from Rio de Janeiro. Haryana's sports and youth affairs minister Anil Vij, who was present in Rio as head of state delegation, accompanied the wrestler on the return flight. Captain Jasbir Malik had come to convey a message from the Malik khap community to the 23-year-old - who won a bronze at Rio, opening India's medal tally this Olympics. "Sakshi is from our khap, so we want to just give our good wishes," said Captain Malik, a smiling senior citizen. When NDTV asked him what he thought of Sakshi's wrestling outfit, he said, "The media gives us a bad name. We understand the changing times".
Sakshi touched down in the Capital in the wee hours and was received by the Ministers of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in Haryana. Sakshi then travelled to Bahadurgarh in Jhajjar district, where Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar along with his senior cabinet colleagues Capt Abhimanyu and O P Dhankar, among others, welcomed the star athlete. At the grand felicitation function at Bahadurgarh, Sakshi was handed a cheque of Rs 2.5 crore by the Chief Minister. She was also appointed as Haryana's brand ambassador for 'Beti Padhao-Beti Bachao' programme. "It is a proud moment for us that girls of the country have done so well. Our two daughters, Sakshi Malik and P V Sindhu (who won a silver medal at the Rio Games), have made the nation proud," Khattar said. He said that sportspersons from Haryana have once again made the country and their state proud.
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