Shocking! Arjuna Awardee slams federation over unpaid Rs 5.5L prize money

NEW DELHI: Arjuna Awardee Grandmaster (GM) Abhijeet Gupta, who became the archetypal Indian to triumph 5 Commonwealth Chess Championship titles, has sparked a monolithic speech regarding the attraction of athletes successful India aft taking to X (formerly Twitter) to uncover that his prize wealth for winning the Odisha GM Open successful January 2026 remains unpaid.In an exclusive speech with TimesofIndia.com connected Saturday, the GM expressed his vexation implicit the deficiency of accountability from some the tourney organisers and the All India Chess Federation (AICF).

The tournament, which included respective grandmasters, concluded connected January 24, 2026. It had a full prize excavation of Rs 45 lakh, with the victor acceptable to person Rs 5.5 lakh. Initially, Gupta was told his winnings would beryllium transferred wrong a mates of weeks."At that time, I was told by the organiser, 'Your prize wealth volition beryllium transferred successful a mates of weeks, truthful delight don't hassle... we are precise busy.' I didn’t fuss overmuch due to the fact that it's a mean signifier successful India that they don't springiness the prize wealth successful cash," Gupta, who had clinched the rubric with an 8/10 score, told this website.However, weeks turned into months. After a follow-up successful March, connection from the organisers went silent.

"After a mates of months, they stopped answering altogether," helium added.Gupta, who received the prestigious Arjuna Award backmost successful 2013, subsequently reached retired to the AICF, noting that the tourney was officially affiliated with the nationalist body."I felt that AICF is besides responsible... if it’s nether AICF, determination has to beryllium immoderate accountability," Gupta added.Despite sending aggregate emails to the federation’s President and Secretary since March, the GM has received nary response.

For the 36-year-old Gupta, the contented surpasses his idiosyncratic finances, arsenic helium is profoundly acrophobic astir the precedent this sets for the adjacent procreation of Indian chess prodigies."I’m already astatine that signifier of my vocation wherever wealth doesn't substance much. But ideate if immoderate 10-year-old wins his archetypal prize and doesn't get it, what benignant of precedent are we setting? If this tin hap to idiosyncratic honoured with the Arjuna Award, 1 tin lone ideate the struggles faced by players astatine the grassroots level," helium said.

Gupta’s station connected X has called upon the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports to intervene, demanding transparency and the extortion of the "dignity and spot of each chess subordinate successful India".When asked astir his adjacent steps if the soundlessness continues, Gupta remained cautious: "I person not decided thing yet. I'll spot however it pans out."