In a recent development, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, a Member of Parliament (MP) from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and President of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), has been granted interim bail until July 20 by a Delhi court. The bail is related to a sexual harassment case filed against him.
Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (ACMM) Harjeet Singh Jaspal of the Rouse Avenue Courts has also granted interim bail to Vinod Tomar, the suspended assistant secretary of the WFI. The court is set to hear arguments on Sharan’s regular bail plea on Thursday.
Additional Public Prosecutor Atul Srivastava, representing the Delhi Police, informed the court that the WFI President was not arrested. However, he opposed the bail on the condition that Sharan should not influence witnesses.
On July 7, Judge Jaspal had issued summons to Singh and Tomar, following the cognizance of Delhi Police’s chargesheet in the sexual harassment case filed by women wrestlers against Singh. Six female wrestlers have accused Singh of sexual harassment, leading to the registration of a first information report (FIR) based on their complaints.
On June 15, 2023, the police filed a chargesheet against Singh for offences under Sections 354 (outraging modesty), 354A (sexually coloured remarks), 354D (stalking) and 506 (1) (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Previously, several wrestlers had staged a protest over the authorities’ failure to act on the sexual harassment allegations against Singh. They had also approached the Supreme Court for the registration of an FIR against Singh. The Supreme Court was later informed by the Delhi Police that an FIR was registered and the investigation was underway.
A minor wrestler had also accused Singh of sexual harassment. However, she later withdrew her complaint, leading to the Delhi Police filing a cancellation report in that case. This case serves as a stark reminder of the ongoing struggle for justice in cases of sexual harassment, particularly in the world of sports.