Rouse Avenue Court’s Chief metropolitan magistrate (CMM) Mahima Rai Singh on Thursday transferred the sexual harassment case filed by wrestlers against former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief and BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, to Additional CMM Harjeet Singh Jaspal. The matter has now been listed for further consideration before the court on June 27.
ACMM Harjeet Singh Jaspal is the judge who is currently hearing an application moved by the wrestlers seeking a court-monitored probe into the case of alleged sexual harassment.
The Delhi police, on June 15th, had filed a charge sheet against Mr. Singh for offences ranging from outraging modesty of a woman, stalking and other offences under the Indian Penal Code, in the Rouse Avenue Court. The police has also approached another court for cancellation of a case filed by a minor wrestler.
Special Public Prosecutor Atul Srivastava said that the charges heet was filed for offences under Sections 354 (outraging modesty), 354A (sexually coloured remarks) and 354D (stalking) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), against Mr. Singh. The police has also booked Vinod Tomar, former assistant secretary WFI, under similar sections along with section 506 (1) (criminal intimidation).
For the uninitiated, several Olympic and World Championship medal-winning wrestlers, including Sakshi Malik, Vinesh Phogat, Bajrang Punia and Sangeeta Phogat, protested for months in New Delhi demanding the arrest of Mr. Singh for allegedly sexually harassing several women grapplers, including a minor. The police only filed an FIR against the accused BJP MP after the intervention of the Supreme Court last month. Sensing further delay in the investigation, the wrestlers recently threatened to immerse their medals in the river Ganga.
As the protest went on, the Sports Minister Anurag Thakur met the wrestlers and assured them of support and protection. Mr. Thakur also assured the wrestlers that police will file the chargesheet by June 15. The protest was suspended on this assurance.
