Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh acquitted in wrestlers' sexual harassment case

A Delhi Court on Monday acquitted former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) Chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and co-accused Vinod Tomar in a sexual harassment case filed by women wrestlers. Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Ashwini Panwar acquitted ex-BJP MP Singh and Tomar, former WFI assistant secretary, in the case. The court on July 2 had reserved the order for August 2 after completion of the final arguments in the case lodged by six women wrestlers. In May 2024, a court had ordered the framing of a charge of criminal intimidation against Singh. It had, however, discharged him in a complaint filed by one of the six women wrestlers. The Delhi Police had filed a chargesheet against Brij Bhushan Singh, on June 15. The decision came two years after the trial began.Former Kaiserganj MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and former WFI secretary Vinod Tomar were present in court when the verdict was pronounced. 
Meanwhile,Wrestler Vinesh Phogat said that she was “deeply saddened” by the acquittal of Brij Bhushan Singh, by court in in sexual harassment case filed by female wrestlers and added that they will appeal against the decision “as soon as possible”. Phogat said that they had to muster up a lot of courage to protest on the streets demanding an FIR against Brij Bhushan but he used “power and muscle” to scare girls and take back their names from the complaint.
“From the very beginning, the entire system, government and this system is engaged in saving Brij Bhushan. The women wrestlers have instructed their lawyers to appeal against this decision, and this will be done as soon as possible. We have not given up hope and the wrestlers will continue their fight,” she added.