Protest of India’s top wrestlers at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, seeking the arrest of Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh for alleged sexual harassment of women grapplers, is about to complete a month, as they contemplate their next move.
Meanwhile, the security has been beefed up at Jantar Mantar and on Delhi’s borders ahead of a farmers’ meeting in support of the protesting wrestlers on Sunday, police said.
Led by Olympic medallists Bajrang Punia, Sakshi Malik and Asian Games gold medallist Vinesh Phogat, the wrestlers’ 15-day ultimatum to arrest the wrestling body chief ends on Sunday, following which their ‘big decision’ regarding their next course of action can be announced today.
The wrestlers who started their protest at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on April 23 have set May 21 as a deadline for the khap mahapanchayat to decide on taking the agitation forward. Wrestlers have earlier indicated that they may take their agitation to Ram Lila ground to make it a “national movement”.
On Saturday, they warned that a “big decision”, which might “not be in the interest of the country”, could be taken on Sunday in view of the “inaction” against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.
Wrestlers vs WFI Chief Latest Updates:
▶Multi-layer barricades have been placed on the city’s borders and checking has been intensified before the famers meeting. The police also said vehicles entering Delhi will be checked and pickets increased.
▶Addressing media at Asian Jantar Mantar on Saturday, Vinesh Phogat said the decision of ‘mahapanchayat’ in Mehem Chaubisi (a cluster of 24 villages) khap in Haryana’s Rohtak district, could hurt the country just like the farmers’ agitation, which lasted nearly 13 months, but wrestlers may go forward with it.
“The decision our elders take [on Sunday] could be a big one, one that might not be in the interest of the country. It could hurt the nation,” said Vinesh.
▶She further noted that the ongoing fight hasn’t been easy for wrestlers as they too had “suffered” by missing out on training and competition.
“We too have suffered a lot. An issue that could have been solved in a minute has taken a month… the farmers’ agitation lasted 13 months and hurt the nation, so if there is another agitation [like that], definitely the country will suffer,” warned Vinesh.
▶Meanwhile, security has been beefed up at Jantar Mantar and on Delhi’s borders ahead of a farmers’ meeting in support of the protesting wrestlers on Sunday. Multi-layer barricades have been placed on the city’s borders and checking has been intensified, police said.
The police also said vehicles entering Delhi will be checked and pickets increased, while the whole area will be covered by CCTV cameras to monitor the situation round the clock.
▶On Saturday, the wrestlers including Phogat, Sakshi Malik and Bajrang Punia claimed they attempted to attend an IPL game at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, in a bid to seek support for their protests, however, they were denied entry.
▶The claim was denied by Delhi Police, which said no wrestler with a valid ticket was barred from watching the Indian Premier League (IPL) match between Delhi Capitals and Chennai Super Kings at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.
A senior police officer said 10 to 12 wrestlers and others came to the stadium to watch the match. However, only five of them had tickets, he said, adding those without tickets or passes were not allowed to enter.
The police asked those with valid tickets to enter the stadium from the gate where they were allowed to. However, they left the area and did not enter the stadium, the officer said.
▶The wrestlers have been protesting at Jantar Mantar since April 23 demanding the arrest of the WFI chief, accused of sexually harassing seven female wrestlers, including a minor.
▶On April 28, the Delhi Police registered two FIRs against the WFI chief on the basis of sexual harassment complaints filed by the wrestlers.
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