Wrestling in India: Ministry of Sports, Olympic Association to investigate sexual harassment allegations against top officials

New Delhi
CNN
—

India’s sports ministry said on Friday it would investigate sexual harassment allegations against the president of the Indian Wrestling Federation (WFI).

Sports Minister Anurag Thakur announced the establishment of an oversight commission to investigate the allegations after meetings with several top wrestlers demanding an investigation.

Wrestlers have been protesting in the Indian capital New Delhi for the past three days, calling for the dismissal of WFI President Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and the dissolution of the WFI.

WFI has denied all allegations.

Olympic wrestler Vinesh Phogat and four others have said they are speaking on behalf of the accusers to protect their identities, and have not publicly released details about the young wrestler’s accusations.

Sports Minister Thakur said at a joint press conference with Ressler in the capital, New Delhi, that “serious allegations will be investigated, whether they are allegations of financial impropriety or sexual harassment.”

“The commission will monitor all day-to-day operations until the investigation is completed, until then Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh will stand aside and cooperate with the investigation,” the minister added.

Thakur’s announcement came after a second meeting between the minister and the wrestler.

It will take four weeks for the commission to complete its investigation, Thakur said.

He added that the name of the oversight board will be announced on Saturday.

Welcoming the announcement, Olympic wrestler Bajran Punia, who attended the meeting, said: “The union’s sports minister has listened to our requests and has ensured that a proper investigation will be carried out. I thank him and expect a fair investigation, and therefore call the protests off.”

Meanwhile, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) will also set up a seven-member committee to investigate the allegations against Singh, according to CNN affiliate CNN News 18.

“We will ensure a full investigation to ensure justice,” said IOA president PT Usha. murmured On Friday, it urged athletes to come forward and voice their concerns.

Several Indian wrestlers wrote to the IOA requesting the establishment of a commission of inquiry to investigate the allegations.

In a letter addressed to the IOA president and shared on Twitter, the five wrestlers said “several young wrestlers” had filed serious complaints of “sexual harassment” against the WFI president.

CNN reached out to WFI for comment, but the federation’s undersecretary, Vinod Tomar, denied all accusations.

“There is an investigation going on,” Tomar added. “These are only claims and have not yet been proven.”

CNN also reached out to WFI President Singh, whose office declined to comment at the time.

The WFI chief did not attend a press conference scheduled for Friday. Instead, his son Pratik Bhushan Singh told reporters, “We have made an official statement to the Ministry of Sports.”

The WFI Director also postponed a press conference scheduled for Sunday “until further notice.”

In a letter to the IOA, Phogat and her fellow wrestlers said, “It took a lot of courage for the wrestlers to come together,” and filed a complaint against Singh, an Indian MP for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. I filed.

“We fear for our lives,” they added.

Phogat is the first female Indian wrestler to win gold medals at the Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games. tweeted on wednesdayadded that “players want self-esteem” and that “if the federation does not support them, morale will collapse”.

so statement on twitterpolitician Bhabita Kumari Phogat, a former women’s wrestler and three-time Commonwealth Games medalist, stands alongside her fellow wrestlers.

“I stand with the athletes in this fight. I fully believe that the government will bring justice to the nation’s athletes who will enhance the nation’s honor in the world,” she said.