advertisement
Indian National Congress (INC) leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has extended support to the Indian wrestlers, who have been protesting against the Wrestling Federation of India’s (WFI) sidelined chief, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, by staging a dharna in New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar since 23 April.
Still awaiting an FIR registration against Singh, on whom sexual harassment charges have been levied and seven complaints have been lodged, the wrestlers have called out political bias in the probe procedure. Echoing the protestors’ sentiments, Vadra has now enquired if the ‘government is aiding the accused,’ via a tweet.
“The victories of female athletes are more significant than anything else. They (female wrestlers) are sitting on the road right next to the Parliament, with tears in their eyes. No one is listening to their complaints against the exploitation that has been going on for a long time,” she added.
The protests had initially started in January, but with the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports (MYAS) forming an oversight committee to probe, and assuring justice, the grapplers had decided to stall the dharna.
After three months of inactivity, the wrestlers have now claimed to have been made victims of politics, requesting support from all parties and khap panchayats to join their cause. Whilst the likes of Udit Raj and Bhupinder Singh Hooda from INC arrived at Jantar Mantar on 25 April to support the wrestlers, Vadra questioned the alleged external influence over Delhi Police.
“Who is influencing the Delhi Police? Why are the leaders of the opposition being questioned by the same police on recording the testimony of an agonised girl in the Bharat Jodo Yatra, but the pleas of the athletes who raise the country's honour are ignored,” she wrote.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has asked Delhi Police to furnish their response by 28 April, after the wrestlers had moved the apex court, seeking an FIR against Singh.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)