Didn't arrest Brij Bhushan because he 'cooperated': Delhi Police
The Delhi Police has said it didn't arrest outgoing Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and the WFI's now-suspended Assistant Secretary Vinod Tomar, both charged with sexual harassment, as they "cooperated" with the investigation. The clarification came after Shiv Sena (UBT) leader and Rajya Sabha MP Priyanka Chaturvedi slammed the Delhi Police for not arresting Singh despite an FIR.
Why does this story matter?
Six prominent women wrestlers have accused Singh of sexual harassment, stalking, and criminal intimidation. The Delhi Police, which falls under the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Centre, has faced allegations of not acting against Singh, a BJP MP. Notably, the police took over a week to file an FIR after the wrestlers lodged complaints. Moreover, the Supreme Court had rebuked it for the delay.
Delhi Police cited SC ruling in previous cases
Explaining the reasons for not arresting Singh, the Delhi Police said, "Both accused have been chargesheeted for trial without arrest as they have complied with the directions under Section 41A of the CrPC by joining the investigation." The police also cited the SC's ruling in previous cases, which stated that the accused in an offense punishable by up to seven years shouldn't be arrested.
Oversight committee was biased: Wrestlers
The notice, which the police said the accused complied with, directed them not to tamper with the evidence, appear before the court when required, not to threaten any person involved in the case, and not to destroy evidence. Meanwhile, the complainants have alleged that the oversight committee investigating the case was biased against them and that their video statements may have been tampered with.
15 witnesses corroborated wrestlers' allegations
The Delhi Police said it didn't find anything incriminating in the analysis of the accused's call detail records. The chargesheet also said that the WFI staffers didn't corroborate the wrestlers' allegations. However, 15 of the 108 witnesses corroborated the claims. Earlier, international referee Jagbir Singh came forward, claiming to have witnessed the WFI chief's inappropriate behavior toward women grapplers several times.
Singh, Tomar to appear before court today
Two photographs from a 2019 event in Kazakhstan that allegedly show Singh making advances toward a complainant are part of the chargesheet. The wrestlers alleged that Singh also threatened them with withholding their participation in upcoming events. However, they have not shared any evidence regarding the threat calls. Singh and Tomar were scheduled to appear before a trial court in Delhi on Tuesday.
