'Wonder kid' Budhia alleges physical torture by coach

New Delhi: He was India’s wonder kid who showed the potential to run his way into record books. Then, the success story began to sour for marathon kid Budhia Singh when allegations of child torture came to fore.

And finally, on Sunday, the child prodigy broke his silence and admitted for the first time that his mentor Biranchi Das torturing.

"Sir (Biranchi) has been beating me since a long time and did not feed me properly,” Budhia was quoted by an Oriya TV channel as saying.

However, Budhia’s statement failed to perturb Biranchi Das who has been under fire for some time now. "The charges against me are baseless. Some people have instigated Budhia's mother against me", he alleged.

Das also claimed that it was he who discovered the talent in Budhia and made him a celebrity when he was rotting in slums. "Can you believe that I can torture the boy whom I have been trying to build up?" he was quoted by PTI as saying.

On June 6, Das resigned from the post of managing trustee of the Budhia Singh Trust (BST), saying that he could not continue as people were doubting his intentions.

However, Das said, "No one can stop the boy from participating in the event." He added that Budhia was free to join the walkathon as an individual. BST's withdrawal from the event is being viewed as an act aimed at evading the ban order.

The coach also alleged that it was Budhia’s mother Sukanti Singh who was plotting against him. Sukanti told reporters that she would not allow her son to stay with Biranchi any more. "As soon as I came to know about the matter, I took him away," she was quoted as saying by news agencies.

Sukanti along with Budhia had taken shelter at a house in Salia Sahi slum in the city where the slum authorities are taking care of the boy.

Sukanti, however, is yet to lodge any complaint with the police.

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