India, Dec. 15 -- Jammu and Kashmir Sports Minister Satish Sharma on Monday assured a time-bound and impartial inquiry into the selection of the Santosh Trophy football team, amid allegations of regional discrimination raised by the BJP.

Taking cognisance of media reports and political criticism, Sharma said a detailed inquiry would be conducted and warned that any violation of merit-based selection norms would invite strict action. "I assure all that any breach of the merit-based policy by anyone will lead to severe consequences and appropriate punitive measures," the minister said in a social media post.

The assurance came a day after BJP spokesperson Rajni Sethi alleged that players from the Jammu region were unfairly excluded, claim...