Not overly impressed by the assurances of the government, the Indian wrestlers sitting on a silent protest at Jantar Mantar in the Indian capital New Delhi since two consecutive days have issued an ultimatum. The wrestlers said they will lodge multiple FIRs against Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) President Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh if the federation is not disbanded.
The wrestlers met Sports Secretary Sujata Chaturvedi, Director General Sports Authority of India (SAI) Sandip Pradhan and Joint Secretary (Sports) Kunal and during the hour-long meeting they were asked to end the protest and assured that their grievances will be addressed.
However, since the wrestlers have been demanding a concrete solution to the problem, they were not enthused by the response.
Consequently, Sports Minister Anurag Thakur agreed to meet the wrestlers at his official residence in Delhi at 10 PM IST (1630 GMT) for talks.
Without disclosing the minutes of the meeting, Vinesh Phogat said, “It’s not just about his (Brij Bhushan) resignation. We will send him to jail. We did not want to take the legal route, because we had hoped for resolution but if a proper solution is not provided, we will lodge FIRs against the president.”
“At least 5-6 girls will lodge FIRs tomorrow and it will be a black day if it happens in a country like India where ‘Durga’ and ‘Lakshmi’ are worshipped. Then I would say that no woman is safe in this country and no daughter should be born to anyone.”
Sakshi Malik, an Olympic medalist said the government needed to take over WFI.
“We want the government to take control of WFI and we will not compete in any competition under the current president.”
Earlier in the day, Babita Phogat, a former Olympian, and a BJP member arrived at the protest site and attempted to mediate between the players and the sports ministry.
“I’m a wrestler first. The BJP government is with the wrestlers. I have heard instances of abuse in my career as well. There is no smoke without fire,” said Phogat.
“I have assured them that the government is with them. I will try that their issues are resolved today.”
The wrestlers have accused the federation president of sexual harassment and exploiting the up-and-coming players.
SAI has issued an official statement demanding an explanation from the WFI on all charges within the next 72 hours.
(With inputs from agencies)
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