SIT records WFI chief Brij Bhushan's statement
Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chairman Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh on Friday recorded his statement before the Delhi Police's Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed to probe the allegations of sexual abuse against him. The SIT reportedly asked Singh to produce some documents. The statement of WFI's assistant secretary, Vinod Tomar, a co-accused in the case along with Singh, was also recorded.
Why does this story matter?
The action comes after scores of wrestlers have been protesting at Jantar Mantar against the WFI chief since April 23. Seven women wrestlers, including a minor, lodged a police complaint against Singh three months after their demand for his removal got them nowhere. Singh is a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP, and the ruling party has been accused of shielding him in the matter.
Singh submitted video evidence, phone data in his defense
Denying all charges before the SIT, Singh reportedly claimed to be innocent. In his defense, he submitted some video evidence and phone data before the SIT. As per the Delhi Police, Singh will be questioned further. Based on the grapplers' complaint, the teams of the Delhi Police also visited Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, and Uttar Pradesh to collect evidence.
SIT formed with six police teams, 4 women police officers
A Delhi court on Wednesday sought a status report regarding the probe by Friday. On Friday, the Delhi Police formed an SIT with six police teams, including four women police officers. A team of ten personnel was formed under the supervision of a woman DCP.
NHRC seeks report on ICC from Union ministry, sports bodies
In the wake of the wrestlers' protest, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Thursday issued notices to national sports federations for not having an Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) as per law to address sexual harassment complaints. It sought reports from the Union sports ministry, the Sports Authority of India (SAI), and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in this regard.
Haryana wrestling body suspended 3 officials for supporting protest
Earlier, the Haryana Amateur Wrestling Association (HAWA) suspended three district officials for supporting the wrestlers. HAWA president Rohtash Singh called the officials' backing the wrestlers' protest "unethical," while in a separate order, it banned a Hisar-based wrestling academy for alleged anti-HAWA, WFI activities. Notably, the Delhi Police didn't register an FIR in the case until the Supreme Court pulled it up a week later.
