4 women wrestlers challenge Brij Bhushan’s acquittal

The magisterial court acquitted former BJP MP and ex-chief of WFI in the case filed by six women wrestlers on August 3.

New Delhi: Four women wrestlers on Friday, September 25, moved a session court, challenging a magistrate’s order acquitting former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh in a sexual harassment case. The plea also assails the acquittal of former WFI assistant secretary Vinod Tomar of the charge of criminal intimidation in the case.

On August 3, the magisterial court acquitted former BJP MP and ex-chief of WFI in the case filed by six women wrestlers, including World Championships medallist Vinesh Phogat, on grounds of lack of evidence. Besides Singh, the court also acquitted Tomar in the case.

According to the plea filed on Friday, the order of acquittal was “erroneous and unsustainable in law”.

The matter is likely to be heard by Special Judge Dig Vinay Singh on Saturday.

Earlier, the magisterial court’s order had noted that two of the five complainant wrestlers stated that they were “forced/pressured” to level allegations of sexual harassment against Singh.

It had said that it appeared from their testimonies that the allegation was politically motivated, “false and fabricated, made collectively” in deep conspiracy. The court also questioned how the complainants mentioned the “wrong country and year” of the alleged first such incident, saying “the contradiction is fatal to the prosecution case” as “it is not difficult but rather abnormal conduct to not remember the place where the incident of sexual harassment had occurred”.

As the complainant wrestlers feared their careers could be impacted, they said they did not make any allegations against the accused in a timely manner, but “it is not understandable” as to how they maintained “cordial relations” with Singh for years and “he was invited to family functions and wedding ceremonies by the victims”, said the 239-page judgement.

The magisterial court had acquitted Singh of “all charges” under IPC sections 354 (assault or criminal force to a woman to outrage her modesty), 354A (sexual harassment) and 506 (I) (criminal intimidation) and Tomar under Section 506 (Part I) of the IPC.

The verdict had underlined that nothing has been proved by the prosecution, showing that these alleged two victims did not support the prosecution’s case due to any overt act attributable to the accused.

It had said that the two wrestlers who were projected as victims right from the inception, appeared before the court and were eventually counselled, following which they categorically admitted that no sexual harassment acts were committed against them.