‘Protest after June 15 if justice denied’: Wrestlers give ultimatum to Centre

“If no action is taken by June 15, we will continue our protest,” Bajrang Punia, an Olympic medal winner among wrestlers said.

As of now wrestlers in India have suspended the protest after Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur promised a swift probe of Wrestling Federation Chief (WFI) Brij Bhushan Singh who has been accused of sexually harassing female athletes.

The wrestlers had been camping since April seeking Brij Bhushan’s arrest, who has denied allegations.

A six-time BJP MP, Brij Bhushan has been booked by Delhi Police following allegations of sexual harassment.

Wrestlers have received the support of khap panchayat, farmers, and some top-notch sportspersons such as Javelin champion Neeraj Chopra, and Olympic gold medallist Abhinav Bindra.

Punia said, “A panchayat of the players was called. We put forward what we had discussed with the government. The government has promised us that all investigations will be done by June 15. The panchayat also said that we will wait till June 15, but if nothing happens, we will call a huge protest”.

Punia said that the government has promised the wrestlers that no one from Brij Bhushan’s family will be elected to the WFI.

The ace Indian grappler said he is hopeful that they will get justice. “We are also cooperating in the investigation, as the police have to file the chargesheet by June 15. Brij Bhushan claimed that there are no witnesses, but two witnesses have already started coming on TV. If we have to start our protest again, then no one will join their duties. But, if we are not protesting, then we will get back to work, as we are employees of Railways”.

Meanwhile, wrestler Vinesh Phogat, one of seven female athletes to have lodged a police case against Singh, has slammed the pace of police in probing the matter.

The 28-year-old first Indian female wrestler to win both the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games gold claimed that during training camps and tournaments, Singh would use “every possible way to single out young athletes and grope them repeatedly”.

“It was the same disgusting pattern over and over again and I am among the victims,” she said.

Phogat also expressed disappointment with Prime Minister Narendra Modi for turning deaf ears to wrestlers’ complaints.

“It’s been emotionally draining, the PM has not said anything about this case,” Phogat said.

“The fact that no one was listening to us forced me and others to start a public protest as we wanted the nation to know how top athletes were being mistreated,” Phogat said.

In January, a brief protest was launched by the aggrieved wrestlers. They resumed their protests on 23 April and on 28 May, the Delhi Police cleared their protest site at Jantar Mantar In Delhi.

The wrestlers also threatened to throw their medals into the Ganges before agreeing to meet with Home Minister Amit Shah and later with the sports minister.

Thakur subsequently said the police would complete their investigation by June 15 and requested the wrestlers not to demonstrate until then.

Updated: 11 Jun 2023, 10:24 AM IST