Chandigarh: Book explores Olympic glory & killing of India's ‘Penalty King'
Prithipal, known as the 'Penalty King' and one of world's most-feared penalty corner specialists, was part of India's Olympic medal haul with a silver in 1960, gold in 1964 and bronze in 1968. He was the first hockey player to receive the Arjuna Award and later served as the chairman of selectors when India won the 1975 Hockey World Cup.
His life ended tragically in 1983 when he was shot dead by his own students at Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), Ludhiana, while he was working as dean, students' welfare at the institution.
Speaking at the launch, Misra recalled how his father first introduced him to Prithipal's hockey feats in the late 1970s. 'A sense of duality that resonated personally with me was that he was a superstar at the same time, extremely humble,' said Misra.
A panel discussion was also held during the launch, moderated by senior journalist Arup Ghosh, and featuring Olympic gold medallist Harbinder Singh, former India hockey captain and MLA Pargat Singh, political ideologue Harcharan Singh Bains and retired professor Ajaib Singh Tiwana. Two other former captains of the Indian Men's hockey team – Dileep Tirkey and Sardar Singh were also in attendance.
Pargat lauded Prithipal's 'phenomenal commitment to the game' and lamented the compromised murder investigation, while Bains remembered him as 'an iconic elder brother for girls on campus' and a feared disciplinarian.
The author revealed that completing the book took nearly six years due to the lack of accessible resources on the legend. 'There are no feature or report pieces that look at Prithipal more as a person than a player,' he said, comparing the dearth of material to the extensive literature on his personal favourite, George Foreman. Misra also shared that he is already halfway through his next 'murder-sports' book, a work of fiction.
Present on the occasion, Hockey India president and former India captain, Tirkey said this about the book, 'I only came to know about Prithipal's feats in 1983 when he died. That was a time when there was less information on hockey players. Salute to the author for writing about his life and also delving into the unsolved mystery of his death.'
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