Delhi Police brought one of the female protesting wrestlers, accompanied by lady constables, to the official residence of the former WFI (Wrestling Federation of India) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh to restructure the sequence of events that led to the alleged sexual harassment.
After getting assurance from Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur on Wednesday, of a thorough investigation into the sexual harassment allegations, the dissenting Indian wrestlers, including Olympians Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik and Bajrang Punia, suspended their protest.
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The gravest charge against Brij Bhushan, who is a six-time MP of India's ruling party BJP and a political strongman, was sexual harassment of seven wrestlers, including a minor. The Delhi Police have filed two cases against Brij Bhushan so far, including one under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO). However, he hasn't been arrested yet.
The female wrestler, one of the complainants, was taken to Brij Bhushan's official residence in New Delhi where they spent close to 30 minutes and Phogat was asked to "recall" the places and instances of harassment. In her complaint, the wrestler had accused Brij Bhushan of sexual harrasment in 2019.
"At 1.30 pm women officers took the wrestler to Brij Bhushan's official residence in Delhi. They were there for half an hour. They asked her to recreate the scene and recall the places where she faced harassment," sources said to PTI.
Meanwhile, slamming Singh, wrestler Vinesh Phogat tweeted: "This is the power of Brijbhushan. He is busy harassing women wrestlers by using his muscle power, political power and running false narratives, so his arrest is necessary. If the police arrests him instead of breaking us, there is hope of justice, otherwise not. Women wrestlers had gone to the crime site for police investigation, but it was run in the media that they had gone to compromise."
Delhi Police's Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been tasked with probing the allegations and they are likely to submit in court their investigation report in the two cases registered against Singh by next week. During their investigation, they have interrogated more than 180 people.
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During the wrestlers' meeting with Thakur, which lasted nearly six hours, they submitted a list of five demands. They have urged for transparent and impartial elections within the wrestling body due to allegations of corruption and mismanagement against its leadership where Brij Bhushan and his clan will be barred from participating.
