Brij Bhushan Gets Time to Reply to Wrestlers’ Appeal Against Acquittal

Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court on Friday granted former Wrestling Federation of India chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh time to respond to an appeal challenging his acquittal in a sexual harassment case involving women wrestlers.

The wrestlers have challenged the August 3 acquittal of Singh and former WFI assistant secretary Vinod Tomar. Special Judge Dig Vinay Singh listed the matter for October 28 after the defence said it had received a copy of the appeal late and needed time to file a reply.

Advocate Rajiv Mohan, appearing with Rehan Khan and Rishabh Bhati, represented Singh and Tomar. Additional Public Prosecutor Manish Rawat appeared for the State.

The court also asked Rawat to seek instructions on whether the State would file a revision petition.

WRESTLERS CHALLENGE ASSESSMENT OF EVIDENCE

The appeal argues that the acquittal is legally unsustainable and rests on a “manifestly erroneous and selective appreciation” of the evidence.

The wrestlers contend that the judgment relies on conjecture, fails to apply binding legal principles and, in parts, draws on “archaic and stereotypical assumptions” about how victims of sexual assault and harassment are expected to behave.

These are grounds raised by the appellants and remain to be considered by the court.

On September 28, the court issued notices to Singh and Tomar. It also directed that the original affidavit and orders containing the complainants’ names be kept in a sealed envelope, and asked the appellants to submit a copy of the petition with those names redacted.

THE CASE AGAINST SINGH AND TOMAR

Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Ashwani Panwar acquitted Singh and Tomar on August 3 following proceedings conducted in a closed courtroom.

The case concerned allegations that Singh sexually harassed women wrestlers in India and abroad during his tenure as WFI chief.

Delhi Police filed a 1,500-page chargesheet against Singh and Tomar on June 15, 2023, following an investigation. The case invoked Sections 354, 354A, 354D, 506(1) and 109 of the Indian Penal Code.

The FIR was registered on complaints by women wrestlers, who had also participated in protests at Jantar Mantar.

With inputs from ANI