Wrestling chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh who is accused of sexual harassment, not new to controversies

New Delhi, Jan 21: Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, the head of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), has been in the eye of the storm for the past few days. He has been asked to step aside from the post after several prominent wrestlers, including Vinesh Phogat, Bajrang Punia, Sakshi Malik have accused him of sexually exploiting women wrestlers 'for years'.

While Brij Bhushan does not hold any ministerial post, the charges have put the BJP in a tight spot ahead of the critical Lok Sabha Elections, given his influence in several constituencies in UP.

Who is Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh?

Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, a BJP MP from Kaiserganj in Uttar Pradesh, is the president of WFI and has been holding the post since 2011.

Singh fought elections for the first time in 1991 and was elected to the 10th Lok Sabha. He was re-elected to the Lok Sabha in 1999, 2004, 2009, 2014, and 2019 respectively.

A six-time MP, he has represented Gonda, Kaiserganj and Balrampur constituencies.

A graduate in law from Avadh University, Singh was a wrestler during his college days and joined students' politics in the 1980s. His political journey began with the Ram Mandir movement in Ayodhya. He rose to prominence due to his fiery 'Hindutva image'.

He is one of the accused in a Babri Masjid demolition case nut was acquitted by the court later.

A long list of criminal cases

Identified as a Bahubali politician from northeastern Uttar Pradesh, the 66-year-old wrestler-politician has faced has three pending cases against him in Allahabad court and one in a Lucknow court, according to his election affidavit for the 2019 polls. He faces charges such as an attempt to murder, rioting, and dacoity, causing voluntary harm to public servant, and illegal payments in connection with an election.

According to The Print, Singh was also accused of attempting to murder former minister Vinod Kumar Singh, also known as "Pandit Singh".

However, Singh, who is facing allegations of sexual harassment as WFI chief, has been acquitted in over 30 criminal cases, some of them registered even before his political journey began.

Controversies

The firebrand saffron leader had made headlines recently after he slapped a wrestler on the stage during the Under-19 National Wrestling Championship at Ranchi, the video of which went viral on social media. He had also recently hogged the limelight over his outbursts against Baba Ramdev.

Earlier, Raj Thackrey wanted to visit the Ram Temple in Ayodhya. Singh said he would be allowed only if he apologised for his remarks on northern Indians working in Mumbai. He had reportedly mobilised over 100,000 people to stop Thackrey from entering the city. Eventually, thackrey had to cancel the visit.

According to reports, in 2020, after her loss at Tokyo Olympics, Singh called Vinesh Phogat a 'khota sikka' (fake coin).