Asian Games Hockey Umpire Manager Gurinder Sangha Leaves Japan Amid Sexual Misconduct Allegations

Gurinder Singh Sangha, a Jalandhar-based international hockey umpire appointed by the Asian Hockey Federation (AHF) as umpire manager for the hockey competition at the 20th Asian Games in Nagoya, left Japan before the tournament concluded, according to the Times of India. Sources told the outlet he departed following multiple complaints of alleged sexual misconduct.

The central allegation involves a female hockey official from Malaysia. A source familiar with the matter told the Times of India that Sangha, "on the pretext of mentoring and teaching her," allegedly tried to hug her on multiple occasions and kissed her. She reported the incident to the Malaysian umpire manager, according to the source.

Separately, multiple sources told the Times of India that Sangha behaved inappropriately toward a member of hotel staff in Japan and showed her obscene videos in his hotel room. That allegation remains unconfirmed and should be treated as such.

Neither the AHF nor Hockey India has issued a public statement confirming an investigation into the Nagoya allegations as of this writing, and Sangha has not been quoted responding to the claims. Those are open questions: has the AHF opened a formal inquiry, and does Sangha dispute the allegations against him?

A Second Complaint, Not the First

This is not the first formal complaint lodged against Sangha. During the Hockey India League in Ranchi in January 2025, umpire Yogita Pasi filed a formal complaint against him while he was serving as Umpires' Manager, according to the Times of India.

Pasi alleged that Sangha's conduct during an interaction at the team hotel in Ranchi on January 20, 2025, was "unwanted and inappropriate" and left her uncomfortable. She urged Hockey India to take action and ensure a safe and respectful working environment for women officials, the Times of India reported.

Hockey India confirmed receipt of that complaint and constituted a three-member committee to conduct a preliminary investigation, according to the outlet. No public finding from that committee has been reported, and it is unclear whether the investigation concluded before Sangha was subsequently appointed by the AHF to the Nagoya role.

What's Proven, What Isn't

Two separate formal or source-attributed complaints, roughly 18 months apart, have now been raised against the same official in two different hockey settings, one domestic and one international. What remains unproven is the underlying conduct itself, since neither complaint has produced a public finding, a disciplinary ruling, or a response from Sangha on the record.

Allegations relayed through unnamed "sources familiar with the development" are not the same as sworn testimony or a completed investigation. The hotel staff allegation in particular comes with an explicit caveat from the Times of India itself that it could not verify the claim.

At the same time, the existence of a formal complaint from umpire Yogita Pasi in January 2025, confirmed by Hockey India, and a second complaint now reportedly involving a Malaysian official at an Asian Games event overseen by the AHF, carries weight. Two sporting bodies in two different countries now have a live paper trail involving the same technical official.

The unresolved question going forward is straightforward: what did Hockey India's three-member committee from the Ranchi complaint actually find, and will the AHF now open a comparable inquiry into the Nagoya allegations? Neither body has said. Until one of them does, Sangha's departure from Japan before the Games concluded is the only confirmed, concrete fact in this story. Everything else sits in the category of serious, repeated, but still-unproven allegation.