Faridabad, June 8: Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has put the diktat asking athletes to give 100 per cent of their earnings through advertisements while on duty to the state on hold. Hours after controversy over the diktat, Khattar tweeted, "I have asked for the relevant file of Sports Department to be shown to me and the notification dated 30th April to be put on hold till further orders. We are proud of the immense contribution by our sportspersons and I assure them of a just consideration of all issues affecting them."

Khattar's statement came after the notification by the Haryana government's Sports and Youth Affairs Department created a stir. The notification said that one-third of the earnings of sportspersons who are employees of Haryana government, either by sports events or by commercial endorsements while the athlete is on leave, will go towards the state of Haryana and that the money will be used for the development of sports in the state.

Not just that, the notification also said that 100 per cent of the athlete's income earned from ad endorsements while on duty, will be deposited with the Haryana State Sports Council.

Several athletes had expressed their disappointment against the Haryana government's order. "I condemn the decision by Haryana government and would request them to reconsider this decision. Why should athletes be punished," asked Olympic medalist Sushil Kumar.

"I am saddened by the notification. It seems as if illiterate people are making policies. Do they not know that we're already paying taxes on the money we win in competitions. If this is how things are going to work, the medal count will go down" Wrestler Babita Phogat had said as quoted by ANI.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 08, 2018 04:59 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).