Sexual harassment case against Brij Bhushan false, fabricated: Delhi court

A Delhi court acquitted Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and Vinod Tomar in the wrestlers' sexual harassment case. The wrestlers plan to challenge the verdict after the court said the charges were not proved.

In Short

• Delhi court acquitted Brij Bhushan Singh and Vinod Tomar on 3 August
• Court said prosecution failed to prove allegations beyond reasonable doubt
• Two wrestlers turned hostile, saying they were pressured into statements

A Delhi court, while acquitting former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh on August 3, had described the sexual harassment allegations against him as “false and fabricated” and said they appeared to be politically motivated.

The court also held that the prosecution failed to establish the charges beyond reasonable doubt.

Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Ashwini Panwar of the Rouse Avenue Courts acquitted Singh and co-accused Vinod Tomar, who is the former Assistant Secretary of the WFI.

The detailed order has not been made public, but its findings cited by reports indicate that two wrestlers whose allegations formed part of the prosecution case turned hostile during the trial.

The court questioned the reliability of the allegations in light of the conduct of some of the complainants after the alleged incidents.

It noted that some of the wrestlers continued to interact with Singh, attended family functions and weddings involving him, and did not make contemporaneous complaints.

The court also noted that the alleged victims did not disclose the incidents even when they met senior authorities.

It further observed that the allegations were similar and had been made around the same time, describing the circumstances as indicative of prior planning.

It concluded that the prosecution had “miserably failed” to prove the allegations against Singh and Tomar beyond reasonable doubt.

The case stemmed from allegations raised by six women wrestlers against Singh, who was then heading the WFI. Delhi Police filed a chargesheet against him in June 2023 under provisions dealing with outraging the modesty of a woman, sexually coloured remarks, stalking and criminal intimidation.

The trial court had framed charges in May 2024, finding sufficient material to proceed against Singh on charges relating to sexual harassment and outraging the modesty of women.

Tomar was separately charged with criminal intimidation in connection with one of the complainants.

The prosecution case was subsequently weakened when two of the wrestlers did not support the allegations during trial.

According to the court's observations, they told the court that they had been pressured to give statements. The court said their evidence significantly undermined the prosecution's case.

A separate complaint filed by a minor wrestler had earlier been withdrawn, following which Delhi Police filed a cancellation report in the POCSO case and the matter was closed.

The allegations against Singh had triggered a major protest by India's top wrestlers in 2023. Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik and Bajrang Punia were among the prominent faces of the 36-day protest at Delhi's Jantar Mantar.

Following his acquittal, Singh has maintained that the allegations were politically motivated. He has said the controversy arose from what he described as physical contact while placing medals around wrestlers' necks and denied sexually harassing them.

The wrestlers, however, have decided to challenge the acquittal. Phogat said their lawyers had been instructed to file an appeal against the verdict.

- Ends