Wrestlers allege threats, financial inducements to seven women, including minor’s family, to withdraw complaints against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh

The country’s top grapplers protesting at Jantar Mantar said that threats of dire consequences and inducements of money were being made to the seven woman wrestlers who filed separate complaints of sexual harassment and criminal intimidation against Wrestling Federation of India president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, also a BJP Member of Parliament from Kaiserganj.
On the third day of the protest, two-time World Championship medall Vinesh Phogat said threats were being made to ‘break the resolve’ of the complainants. Tokyo Olympics bronze medall Bajrang Punia accused Singh’s coterie of threatening the family of the minor, one of the seven complainants.
“They are trying to threaten the minor victim and pressure is being put on the family members to withdraw the complaint. We have learned that one of the people threatening them is a coach who is a Dronacharya-award winner and the other is the secretary of the Haryana Wrestling Association. They went to her house and are putting pressure on the family and also offered money. They want her to take the complaint back. Those women wrestlers who have filed complaints against the WFI president are being threatened too,” Bajrang said at Jantar Mantar on Tuesday.
The complaints were filed on Friday at the Connaught Place Police Station in New Delhi, and it is learnt that the wrestlers have cited multiple instances of sexual harassment, dating back to 2012 and as recent as 2022.What is unfortunate, Vinesh said, is that the names of the victims who regered the complaints at the police station seem to have been leaked to the WFI president.
“If a girl makes a complaint of sexual harassment, what should the police do? There needs to be an FIR, an arrest should be made under POCSO (The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act). But why have the police not done these basic things so far? And now the complainants are being threatened and being asked to withdraw the case,” Vinesh said.Unlike in January when they sat in protest till dusk and returned the next morning, this time the wrestlers, including Rio Olympics bronze medall Sakshi Malik, are spending the night at Jantar Mantar. The protesting wrestlers have said they have lost faith in the Oversight Committee set up the sports minry to probe the allegations of sexual harassment against the WFI president.

The report of the Oversight Committee headed boxing legend Mary Kom has not been made public despite the one-month deadline expiring the end of February.
The government on Monday shared the ‘major findings’ of the Oversight Committee but remained silent on the charges against the WFI president.
In a letter to Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president and former sprint queen PT Usha, the sports minry mentioned only the structural lapses within the WFI, including the absence of an Internal Complaints Committee, and called for “effective communication between the Federation and the sportspersons”. The minry also declared the ongoing process for the WFI elections, scheduled to take place on May 7, as null and void, and directed the IOA to form an ad-hoc committee.
No going back
“Hamare saath game ho gaya (We were fooled the last time). We believed we would get justice and that is why we ended the protest after three days. But this time, we won’t get swayed false promises. Till the investigation is taken to its conclusion, and arrests are made based on the complaints, we will not stop protesting. We have faith in the Supreme Court,” Vinesh said.
The wrestlers made it clear that just filing an FIR against the accused was not enough.
“We won’t end our protest when an FIR is lodged. He (the WFI president) has to be arrested and put behind bars. So many people roam around freely despite an FIR being lodged against them. Will we be safe if he is free? And how will we train, if he is roaming free?” Vinesh said between meeting politicians from different parties, members of farmer unions and khap leaders.

The wrestlers had sought the support of political parties and women’s organisations on Monday in a departure from their earlier stand. Former Haryana chief miner Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Commun Party of India leader and former Rajya Sabha MP Brinda Karat and Aam Aadmi Party spokesperson Reena Gupta were among those who met the wrestlers on Tuesday.
“The question is why those athletes, who should have been at a stadium, are being forced to sit in protest at Jantar Mantar. There needs to be a thorough investigation into the matter. The athletes need to get justice and my full support is with them,” Hooda tweeted.

Local leaders from Haryana and Western Uttar Pradesh, who were involved in the farmer protests, also came forward with the promise of hundreds of supporters travelling to Jantar Mantar over the next few days.
“Earlier (in January), we didn’t want the people from political parties to come to the protest site because then people would say we are trying to play politics. But after that, we were fooled. We have asked everyone to come, including politicians, farmers and khap leaders because people want to support us and are fighting for the self-respect and dignity of women wrestlers. This is not about Uttar Pradesh versus Haryana. The UP-Haryana story is being spread those who want us to fail and those who are close to Brijbhushan Sharan Singh,” Vinesh said.
evening, there was a power failure at the protest site, as the microphones fell silent and the fans stopped working. “Whatever happens, we will be here at Jantar Mantar night and day till our women wrestlers get justice,” Jitender, an Asian Wrestling Championship silver medall, said.