Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh moves Delhi HC against top wrestlers who protested against WFI Chief

New Delhi, Jan 23: The under-fire Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh has moved Delhi High Court against allegations of sexual harassment by country's ace wrestlers including Vinesh Phogat, Bajrang Punia, Sakshi Malik and Ravi Dahiya. The wrestlers had levelled serious charges of sexual harassment against Brij Bhishan, and coaches of the federation.

The plea was filed by his cook Vicky in the court, seeking the first information report over "extortion and blackmailing by making allegations of sexual assault".

The plea alleged that the wrestlers in the protest have completely misused the sexual harassment laws by making them a mockery of justice. If any player had undergone sexual harassment, they must have acted in accordance with the law through police and courts.

The also plea also seeks direction for registration of FIR against players including Vinesh Phogat, Bajrang Punia for allegedly abusing the process of law by putting the WFI Chief under extortion for making him resign. However, according to reports, the petition has been withdrawn.

It is also alleged that the players have crossed their limits to tarnish the reputation and dignity of the Brij Bhushan by publicly making serious allegations of sexual harassment of women wrestlers.

The WFI emergency general council meeting, scheduled in Ayodhya on Sunday, was called off after the ministry directed it to suspend all ongoing activities owing to the various allegations against the sports body and its president.

On Saturday, the sports ministry had said it had asked the WFI to suspend "all ongoing activities with immediate effect", including the Ranking Tournament in Gonda, UP, the federation president Sharan's stronghold.

"Centre has heard all players pertaining to allegations levelled against WFI. A tournament was stopped immediately, Additional secretary was sacked and an oversight committee will begin an impartial probe so that everything gets clear," Union Sports Minster Anurag Thakur told reporters on Sunday.

The ministry had on also suspended WFI's assistant secretary Vinod Tomar, a fallout of the grapplers' allegations of sexual harassment and corruption against the sports body's chief. It had decided to suspend Tomar, "with immediate effect, to ensure proper functioning of WFI".