New Delhi: Boxing great MC Mary Kom will lead a five-member Oversight Committee that will probe sexual harassment charges against Wrestling Federation of India president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. The government-appointed Committee will also run the day-to-day affairs of WFI for the next one month.
The other members of the panel are Olympic medallist wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt, former badminton player and Mission Olympic Cell member Trupti Murgunde, ex-TOPS CEO Rajagopalan and former SAI executive director - teams - Radhika Sreeman. The announcement of the panel was made by Sports Minister Anurag Thakur on Monday.
Thakur had decided to form the Committee on Saturday following a three-day sit-in protest by some of the country's top wrestlers including Vinesh Phogat, Bajrang Punia, Sakshi Malik and Ravi Dahiya against WFI and Singh. In a press conference on Saturday, Thakur had said that the committee will complete its investigation within four weeks. “The wrestlers put forward their demands. I have assured them that appropriate steps will be taken. All allegations of sexual harassment and financial misappropriation will be probed,” Thakur had said.
The Sports Minister had also said that WFI president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh would step down till the investigation is over and will cooperate with the probe. On Friday, the Indian Olympic Association had also formed a seven seven-member committee that also is headed by Mary Kom to probe into the allegations raised by the wrestlers.
The other six members include Weightlifting Federation of India (IWLF) treasurer Sahdev Yadav, archer Dola Banerjee, Olympic medalist wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt, Beijing Olympics gold medallist shooter Abhinav Bindra and two lawyers. The members have been tasked to hold dialogues with the agitating wrestlers, including Vinesh Phogat, Bajrang Punia, Sakshi Malik, Ravi Dahiya and Deepak Punia, among others, and look into the charges of sexual harassment and intimidation against Singh.
The members would also like to meet the victims of harassment if the protesting wrestlers wish to share their names with the committee in strict confidentiality. Though the new five-member oversight committee will submit its report within four weeks, no time-frame has been set for the committee to submit its report to IOA president PT Usha and the executive council (EC).
In an unprecedented manner, the wrestlers and their nearly 200 supporters held a sit-in protest for three days at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi last week, accusing the federation president of sexually and mentally harassing young female athletes. They had sought the immediate removal of Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and some other officials pending inquiry against them. The protestors, however, called off the demonstration on Saturday following a government assurance that their allegation of sexual harassment will be inquired into.
Singh, who is also an MP of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, earlier dismissed the allegations as a political ploy to usurp his position and told media he was “ready to be hanged” if even any female wrestler proved the sexual harassment charge.
Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh denies filing any petition
Brij Bhushan Monday denied reports that he had filed a petition in Delhi high court against the Delhi government, the wrestlers who protested, and the news channels. "I deny the news of filing a petition in the name of Vicky showing my Delhi residence address on the news channel. I have not authorized any advocate, law agency or representative to file a petition in any court of law," he said.
Earlier in the day, a Petition was moved in Delhi High Court against the protesting wrestlers. Lawyer Sharikasnt Prasad after filing the plea claimed that the petitioner in the matter is Vicky, whose address is 21, Ashoka Road, the official residence of Member of Parliament Brij Bhushan Sharan and is working as his cook. The plea alleged that the Protestors/Wrestlers have completely misused the sexual harassment laws by making them a mockery of justice. if any player had undergone sexual harassment, they must have acted in accordance with the law through police and courts etc. Following Brij Bhushan's statement, the petition was reportedly withdrawn.
