14/08/2026
A Class 12 student's emotional account of missing an international Taekwondo tournament sparked a political row in Uttarakhand after the Congress alleged that she had been asked for a bribe. In a later video, however, the student gave a fuller account and did not describe the money as a bribe.
Shayra, a 17-year-old student of CNI Girls School, raised the issue during Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami's 'Mukhyamantri Yuva Vidyarthi Manthan' programme in Dehradun on August 10.
She told the gathering that she had won gold at a national Taekwondo competition and was selected for an international event, but could not participate because she was unable to arrange Rs 1.5 lakh.
Shayra became emotional while speaking, prompting Dhami to comfort her and direct officials to collect details about her school and look into the matter.
On the controversy over selection for the International Qwan Ki Do competition, Shayra later clarified saying, “I couldn't fully articulate what I wanted to say to the Chief Minister. I was a bit flustered and lost my composure…the national event held in Jammu was for Qwan Ki Do. I won a gold medal there and was selected for the international event. I was receiving direct sponsorship of Rs 1.5 lakh, but I had to cover Rs 50,000 myself for expenses like travel and security fees…there were also issues regarding the passport; I could only apply for one once I turned 18. Another option was to apply using my family members' passports, but they didn't have them...When I went to the passport office after 15 days, I was told it would take at least 20 days for the process. That timeline meant I would miss the deadline…so I didn't get the passport made, which killed my chance of going even more.”
