WFI row: Delhi court summons Brij Bhushan on July 18
Delhi's Rouse Avenue Court has summoned Wrestling Federation of India's (WFI) outgoing chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and the WFI's former assistant secretary Vinod Tomar on July 18 in the sexual harassment case lodged against them by India's prominent wrestlers. The court took cognizance of the chargesheet, in which the accused are charged with alleged sexual harassment, assault, and stalking of six women wrestlers.
Why does this story matter?
The wrestlers held a five-month-long protest demanding action against Singh. They ended it after the Delhi Police filed the chargesheet in June. The central government, led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), drew flak for the delay in investigation and its handling of the protest. Notably, Singh is a BJP MP from Uttar Pradesh's Kaiserganj, and the party has been accused of protecting him.
Court postponed consideration of cognizance twice
Reportedly, the court had postponed the date of consideration of cognizance of the chargesheet twice, on June 27 and July 1. The investigating officer earlier said that the police were likely to file a supplementary chargesheet once the forensic report and call detail record (CDR) is received. The police said Singh has a BSNL number, so the CDR was expected in 10-15 days.
Sufficient evidence to proceed: Court
On Friday, the court observed that there was sufficient evidence in the case to proceed. The chargesheet reportedly contains statements from around 180 people. Previously, international referee Jagbir Singh came forward claiming to have witnessed Singh's inappropriate behavior toward women grapplers several times. He mentioned instances from the 2022 Asian Championship Wrestling trials in Lucknow and the 2013 Junior Asia Championship in Thailand.
UWW expressed disappointment over 'lack of results of investigation'
The complainants include several Olympic and Asian Games' medalists. In May, the protesting wrestlers were detained while trying to march to the new Parliament during its inauguration to call attention to their demand. Following this, the United World Wrestling (UWW), the global governing body of the sport, condemned the treatment of the protesters and expressed "disappointment over the lack of results of the investigations."
UWW threatened to suspend WFI, gave ultimatum for holding elections
The UWW also threatened to suspend the WFI and gave it an ultimatum of 45 days to hold elections. Immediately after, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) said the polls would be held on July 4. Notably, Singh has been the WFI chief for nearly 10 years. His son, Prateek Bhushan Singh, is also a WFI office bearer and an MLA in the UP Assembly.
Gauhati HC stayed WFI polls
The WFI elections were, however, postponed to July 6 and to July 11. Last month, the Gauhati High Court stayed the election after the Assam Wrestling Association, disaffiliated from the WFI along with five other states, sought to nominate their representative to the electoral college.
