Wrestler Vinesh Phogat during the wrestlers’ protest against Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, Monday, May 22, 2023. (PTI Photo/Manvender Vashist Lav)
Sat 03 June 2023:
At least ten incidences of molestation and sexual favors have been documented in two First Information Reports (FIRs) submitted by protesting Indian wrestlers against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, the head of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) and a BJP MP, The Indian Express reported.
Singh is accused of sexual harassment and misbehavior, including groping, unwanted touching, and making approaches at female wrestlers, according to the FIRs. The claims reflect a long history of aggressive behavior . The FIRs were filed at the Connaught Place police station in New Delhi.
The wrestlers have been protesting in the capital for more than a month over the lack of action against Brijbhushan Sharan Singh, a member of parliament belonging to Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.
The protesting athletes have demanded his “immediate arrest” and sought the intervention of the Supreme Court, which directed the police to register a case against the 66-year-old. The MP has been accused of harassing several female athletes while leading the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI). He has denied all the allegations.
यह देखकर मुझे बहुत दुख हो रहा है | There has to be a better way to deal with this. https://t.co/M2gzso4qjX
— Neeraj Chopra (@Neeraj_chopra1) May 28, 2023
Charges of molestation, groping
All complainants have accused Singh of groping and inappropriately touching them, according to the FIRs. The ordeal of three of them shows a pattern where Singh allegedly touched their breasts and stomachs on the pretext of checking their breathing, The Indian Express reported.
“One day while I was out for dinner in the hotel restaurant, the accused [Singh] called me separately to his dinner table,” one of the women alleged. “To my utter shock and surprise and without my consent, [he] placed his hand on my breast and groped me and then slid his hand down to my stomach,”
He continued to do grope her several times, she added.
Sangeeta Phogat and Vinesh Phogat being detained by police in New Delhi, on May 28, 2023.
In another instance at Singh’s office, he put his hands on the woman’s palm, knee, thighs and shoulders and then touched her breasts on the pretext of checking her breathing, she alleged.
Another woman said that Singh molested her in a similar manner while she was lying down on a wrestling mat. This woman also alleged that Singh called her to her office, asked her brother to wait outside and tried to forcefully make physical contact.
A third woman alleged that Singh was always “on the lookout to engage in inappropriate talk/gestures”, the FIR stated. “Girls, including myself, collectively agreed to not go alone for breakfast, lunch or dinner,” she said in her complaint, The Indian Express reported.
Security personnel detained wrestler Vinesh Phogat during wrestlers’ protest march towards new Parliament building, in New Delhi, on May 28, 2023. (PTI Photo)
According to one FIR, a wrestler said that she was harassed in Mongolia in 2006.
The WFI chief placed his hand on her breast without consent, she said. “I tried to resist the actions of Singh but could not react to the indecent and continuous acts of groping and molestation by Singh as I was shell-shocked due to the acts of the accused person to the extent that it sent a chill down my spine and my body froze and I could not react in any manner,” the FIR reads.
As she was training in Bellary, Karnataka for the Asian Indoor Games the werestlers suffered a serious concussion for which she was hospitalised. Despite informing the Wrestling Federation of the incident via email, the federation issued a show cause notice to her without considering her emails, according to the FIR. The notice required her to visit the federation’s office in New Delhi.
During a meeting that happened in her visit to the federation, Singh touched her her inappropriately on her palm, knee, thighs and shoulders without consent. Another incident of harrassment followed this on the next day, where the WFI chief on the pretext of checking her breathing, touched her inappropriately with the intent to outrage her modesty.
Complaint by the minor
The minor girl’s father alleged in his complaint that on the pretext of taking a photo, Singh “had forcefully pulled the girl towards him and held her so tightly that she couldn’t move or free herself from his grip”, The Hindu reported.
“Singh further deliberately slid his hand down her shoulder and brushed his hand against her breasts,” the father said in the complaint.
The wrestling federation chief also asked the minor to stay in touch with him. “If you support me, I will support you,” Singh said, according to The Hindu. The minor responded: “Sir, I have come this far on my own and I’ll work hard to go ahead.”
Demands of sexual favour for professional help
One of the six woman wrestlers who had filed the first complaint alleged: “To further fulfil his sexual intentions, he also tried to bribe me by offering to buy me supplements which I may require as an athlete in exchange for sexual favours”.
Another wrestler said that Singh had tried to pull her towards him by the shoulder on the pretext of taking a photo, The Indian Express reported. When she tried to resist, Singh allegedly said. “Acting too smart? You don’t want to be considered for tournaments in the future?”
Olympic and World Championships medal winning wrestles, including Sakshi Malik, Vinesh Phogat, Bajrang Punia and Sangeeta Phogat, have been protesting in New Delhi demanding the arrest of Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.
The wrestlers protesting at Jantar Mantar since April 23 were removed from the site by the police on Sunday after they tried to march to the new Parliament building during its inauguration. They were detained and released later.
SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES
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