New Delhi: While Delhi Police Thursday filed a chargesheet against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP and benched Wrestling Federation of India chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, it has also submitted a report in court under section 173 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPc), requesting for cancellation of the case filed against him under Protection Of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, ThePrint has learnt.
The request for cancellation of case under POCSO, filed in Delhi’s Patiala House Court, is based upon a revision in the statement given by a minor complainant and her father, police sources told ThePrint.
Two FIRs were filed against 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, after they refused Singh’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.
Bhushan had earlier denied the allegations against him, terming them “politically motivated”.
Police sources told ThePrint that the chargesheet against Bhushan has been filed for sexually harassing, using force to outrage modesty and stalking the women wrestlers.
Talking about the request to cancel the POCSO case against the benched WFI chief, the sources added that case too was under investigation, but no evidence could be found to corroborate the allegations made by the father of the minor wrestler initially and after he retracted from his statement, it was decided that a cancellation request will be filed in court.
It is now up to the court to accept or reject the cancellation report, they added.
POCSO was the only stringent section against Bhushan. In the chargesheet filed against him, all sections are bailable and carry a maximum punishment of up to five years.
Also read: Delhi Police file chargesheet against Brij Bhushan. ‘Relies on testimonies, lacks tech evidence’
The complaint and the revision
In his initial complaint to the police, the minor’s father had graphically described an alleged assault of his daughter by Brij Bhushan and cited it as the reason why his daughter was “discriminated against” and “unfairly judged” at a crucial trial.
According to the FIR filed in the case, a copy of which was accessed by ThePrint, when the wrestler, now aged 17, won a gold medal in a championship in India, Bhushan “on the pretext of taking a photo, forcefully pulled her towards himself and held her so tightly by her arms that she could not move or free herself from his grip”.
“He further squeezed her towards himself and pressed really hard on her shoulder and then deliberately slid his hand down her shoulder and brushed his hands against her breasts,” the minor’s father had alleged
The FIR further claimed Bhushan as saying to the minor, “Tu mereko support kar, mei tereko support karuga, mere saath touch mein rahna (You support me, I will support you. Stay in touch with me)”. The girl had purportedly said, “Sir mein apne balboote par yaha tak aayi hu, aage bhi mehnat karke aage tak jaugi (Sir I’ve come so far on my own, and I will work hard to go ahead.)’
The benched WFI chief then allegedly warned the minot that the trials for the Asian Championship were to be held soon and since she was not cooperating with him, she will have to bear the repercussions.
The complainant further claimed in the FIR that Brij Bhushan also called his daughter to his room and “tried making forceful physical contact with her”. While she managed to leave the room, she was allegedly hugely discriminated against during the trials for the Asian Championship, since she “resisted the sexual advances of the accused and was not willing to give into his unjust and indecent demands”.
He claimed that Brij Bhushan continued to make remarks like “personally aakar milna” (come see me personally) towards her daughter.
“My daughter is a young wrestler aged 17 years and at the beginning of her career. She could not muster up the courage to face a sexual predator like the accused and as such could not make a complaint or raise these issues with the Federation as the Federation is totally under the control of the accused and works as per his dictates,” the complainant says.
The FIR was, therefore, filed on the basis of his complaint saying that a “prima facie offence” under the IPC and POCSO provisions is made out.
On 5 June, the father, however, recorded a fresh statement at Patiala house court, in which he retracted the charge of sexual harassment brought against wrestling federation chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.
“I had written some ‘false’ things the first time,” he had told ThePrint, claiming that he and his daughter made such charges out of spite. “I was angry at him (Brij Bhushan) for making my daughter lose a crucial match,” he added.
When asked why he had decided to go back on his statement, he said that he was “scared” and was “being threatened” and that this experience has been draining for him and his daughter both.
But he didn’t reply when asked specifically if he was threatened by Bhushan, or was under pressure from the agitating wrestlers to lodge a fake complaint. “I support the cause of wrestlers,” he had said.
(Edited by Poulomi Banerjee)
Also read: ‘Left our rooms in groups to avoid being alone with him’ — what FIRs against Brij Bhushan allege