One of the parents of a participant at a swimming competition held in Kozhikode city on Sunday (August 30, 2026) objected to his daughter accepting the winning prize from IAS officer Sriram Venkitaraman.
The incident occurred at a private swimming pool complex in Cherootty Nagar on Sunday afternoon after a triathlon — a multi-sport race combining swimming, running and cycling. The event mainly featured children, while Mr. Venkitaraman participated in the elders’ category.
When Mr. Venkitaraman was asked to give away the prize to a girl who had won the swimming competition, her father objected, saying that “a murderer should not give it to my daughter.” He then insisted that someone else hand over the prize to his daughter.
Mr. Venkitaraman is an accused in the 2019 road accident in Thiruvananthapuram in which journalist K.M. Basheer died. Some of those gathered at the venue reportedly objected to the parent’s remarks, but he stood by his demand. Subsequently, Sub-Collector S. Goutham Raj gave away the prize to the girl.
A video of the incident was later shared on social media.
Published – August 30, 2026 09:16 pm IST
