New Delhi: On Sunday, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and Commonwealth Games medalist, wrestler Babita Phogat, dismissed claims by Olympian Sakshee Malikkh and her husband Satyawart Kadian that it was Phogat who had taken permission from Delhi Police for the wrestlers’ protest at the national capital’s Jantar Mantar.
Phogat, whose sister Sangeeta Phogat, cousin Vinesh Phogat and brother-in-law Bajrang Punia have been among those leading the wrestlers’ protest against benched Wrestling Federation of India chief and BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, has been largely silent on the agitation. She had also objected when Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi visited the protest site in April.
The protestors have accused Bhushan of sexually harassing women wrestlers and demanded his arrest. Brij Bhushan has denied all allegations against him, terming them “politically motivated”.
In a video shared on Twitter Saturday, Malikkh and Kadian claimed that permission for them to protest at Jantar Mantar was taken by two BJP leaders — Babita Phogat and Tirath Rana.
Responding to the allegations of the protest being fuelled by Haryana Congress leader Deepender Hooda, they also showed a letter, claiming that Phogat and Rana, the BJP Sonipat district secretary, wrote to the Delhi Police, seeking permission to protest at Jantar Mantar.
The Truth.#WrestlersProtest pic.twitter.com/eWHRpOSwD9
— Sakshee Malikkh (@SakshiMalik) June 17, 2023
In a tweet Sunday, Phogat dismissed the claims and said there was no proof of her consent on the permission letter and neither was it remotely connected with her. She further alleged that Malikkh had become a “puppet in the hands of the Congress”.
एक कहावत है कि
ज़िंदगी भर के लिये आपके माथे पर कलंक की निशानी पड़ जाए।
बात ऐसी ना कहो दोस्त की कह के फिर छिपानी पड़ जाएँ ।
मुझे कल बड़ा दुःख भी हुआ और हँसी भी आई जब मैं अपनी छोटी बहन और उनके पतिदेव का विडीओ देख रही थी , सबसे पहले तो मैं ये स्पष्ट कर दूँ की जो अनुमति का काग़ज़… https://t.co/UqDMAF0qap
— Babita Phogat (@BabitaPhogat) June 18, 2023
She accused the protesting women wrestlers of being misguided by the Opposition — “You have become puppets in Congress’s hands. It is time that you should declare your real intentions in front of the people ,” she said — Malikkh, in another tweet Sunday, said the previous day’s video was shared as they (Phogat and Rana) were earlier “trying to use the wrestlers for their own gains”.
वीडियो में हमने तीरथ राणा और बबीता फोगाट पर तंज कसा था कि कैसे वे अपने स्वार्थ के लिए पहलवानों को इस्तेमाल करना चाह रहे थे और कैसे पहलवानों पर जब विपदा पड़ी तो वे जाकर सरकार की गोद में बैठ गये. हम मुसीबत में ज़रूर हैं लेकिन हास्यबोध इतना कमज़ोर नहीं हो जाना चाहिए कि ताकतवर को… https://t.co/xGn81uHyav
— Sakshee Malikkh (@SakshiMalik) June 18, 2023
‘Trying to use wrestlers for their selfish interests’
In her tweet Sunday, Phogat wrote, “I have been asking (the wrestlers) from day one to have faith in the Prime Minister and the judicial system of the country, the truth will definitely come out. Being a female player, I was, am and will always be with all the players of the country, but I was not in favor of this from the beginning of the protest”.
She added: “I repeatedly told all the wrestlers that a solution can be found if they met the Prime Minister or the Home Minister…but you were seeking a solution from Deepender Hooda, the Congress and Priyanka Gandhi…”
However, Malikkh in a second tweet said, “In the video, we taunted Tirath Rana and Babita Phogat about how they were trying to use wrestlers for their selfish interests and how when the wrestlers were in trouble, they went and sat on the lap of the government.”
“We are definitely in trouble, but our sense of humor should not become so weak that we cannot even laugh at the jokes of the powerful,” she said.
Two FIRs were filed against Brij Bhushan on 28 April, based on complaints filed by seven wrestlers, including a minor, who alleged sexual harassment and discrimination during trials and selection for championships for refusing Bhushan’s alleged advances.
The father of the minor wrestler later, however, recorded a fresh statement at Patiala house court on 5 June, in which he retracted the charge of sexual harassment brought against Bhushan.
Delhi Police last week filed a chargesheet against Brij Bhushan for sexually harassing, using criminal force to outrage modesty and stalking women wrestlers, under sections 354A, 354 and 354D of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), police sources had earlier told ThePrint. All these are bailable offences.
Police had also submitted a report in court under section 173 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPc), requesting for cancellation of the case filed against Bhushan under Protection Of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, based on the revised statement given by the minor’s father, sources had added.
Meanwhile, the protesting wrestlers had been arrested last month, after they tried to march to the new Parliament complex during its inauguration. They were later released and have also been assured by the government that FIRs against them will be withdrawn.
(Edited by Smriti Sinha)
Also read: ‘Left our rooms in groups to avoid being alone with him’ — what FIRs against Brij Bhushan allege