PT Usha says protesting wrestlers ‘tarnishing India’s image’. Bajrang Punia responds

Wrestler Bajrang Punia on Thursday said protesters did not expect such a harsh response from Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president PT Usha, who claimed that grapplers protesting on the streets over sexual harassment allegations against Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president Briji Bhushan Sharan. Singh "was tantamount to indiscipline".

Decorated wrestlers Vinesh Phogat, Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik are the three central figures of the renewed protests against WFI chief and BJP MP Briji Bhushan Sharan Singh. "Wrestlers staging a protest on the streets is indiscipline. It is tarnishing India's image," Usha, who is also a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha, told reporters after the IOA executive committee meeting.

Reacting to Usha's remarks, Punia, according to reports, said, "We didn't expect such a harsh response from IOA president PT Usha, we expected support from her."

The IOA and the government managed to placate the wrestlers by assuring they would investigate their allegations against Sharan and the wrestling federation after the protest first erupted in January. The wrestlers renewed their protest demanding that a case be registered against the BJP MP based on their police complaint, followed by his arrest under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenders Act (POCSO) as one of the complainants is a minor.

The protesting wrestlers also urged the Supreme Court to seek an FIR against Sharan on charges of sexual harassment. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal referred the petition before a bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dhananjay Y Chandrachud and Justice PS Narasimha for an urgent hearing, arguing that the police were required to register a case as the matter involved sexual harassment.

The Supreme Court termed Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh's allegations of sexual harassment as "serious" as it issued a notice to the Delhi Police in the matter.

The CJI said, “There are serious allegations in the petition at the behest of wrestlers who represented India regarding sexual harassment. Release notice, returnable on Friday.” Former wrestler Babita Phogat, who was included in the commission to probe the allegations, alleged that member Radhica Sreeman did not let her read the report in detail and had some objections to the report.