“We are confident that we will win the fight for justice. We will do our best so that not only will the global wrestling community know our fate, but we will also reach out to athletes from other disciplines. No country is remained untouched by incidents of sexual harassment in sport,” Vinesh said.
The protesting wrestlers also said their goal was entirely to get justice from the court, while adding that the findings of the Oversight committee constituted by the Ministry of Sports is no longer relevant.
The Department of Sports had assembled a six-member panel led by legendary boxer MC Mary Kom on January 23 and asked him to issue his findings on allegations of sexual harassment made by female grapplers against former Indian Wrestling Federation leader Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.
The committee submitted its report the first week of April, but the ministry has yet to make its findings public.
When asked if she was aware of the findings of the oversight committee, Jakarta 2018 Asian Games gold medalist Vinesh Phogat said: “That is in the past. We are not deliberating or thinking about what the committee did or didn’t do. The duration of the committee was three months…it’s over now and the fight has gone to court, so we’ll focus on that,” he said. said Vinesh.
The protest by India’s top wrestlers including Vinesh, Olympic medalists Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik demanding the arrest of Brij Bhushan for allegedly sexually harassing seven female wrestlers has entered its 25th day with no solution in sight.
On Wednesday, grapplers and their supporters took out a procession of Jantar Mantar at Bangla Sahib Gurudwara and offered prayers there.
(ANI Photo)
Vinesh added that the decision to be taken by the senior khap panchayat leadership on May 21 will be crucial in their fight against Brij Bhushan.
“Whatever decision our elders make on May 21 (the deadline set by the wrestlers for concrete action against Brij Bhushan) will bind us. They will chart our future course,” Vinesh said.
She also criticized those who tried to give a political color to the wrestlers’ unrest.
“This protest is not a platform for political parties. Every citizen of the country is free to visit Jantar Mantar. We welcome everyone to the protest site without discrimination of party, religion or caste,” she said.
The wrestlers had visited the Hanuman Temple near Connaught Place on Tuesday accompanied by army chairman Bhim Chandrashekhar Azad and hundreds of supporters.
Briefing the media after the march, Olympic and world medalist Bajrang Punia called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Interior Minister Amit Shah to intervene and bring justice to the wrestlers.
The wrestlers had also indicated that they could take their agitation to the Ram Lila ground to make it a “national movement”.
(With PTI entries)
