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Seven wrestlers had approached the Supreme Court to request the registration of an FIR against WFI President and BJP MP Brij Bhushan Singh, alleging sexual harassment. A bench led by CJI Chandrachud issued notice to the NCT of Delhi regarding the plea and allowed the petitioners to submit additional documents in a "sealed cover." The Supreme Court also directed the Delhi Police Commissioner to assess the threat perception concerning the alleged minor victim and make appropriate security arrangements.
The Delhi High Court, on Thursday, pulled up former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief and BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, who was seeking to quash the sexual harassment proceedings initiated against him by female wrestlers.
The bench, led by Justice Neena Bansal Krishna, questioned the challenge to the framing of charges along with the entire criminal proceedings and remarked, "You can't challenge everything. You should have done it before. Once the trial has started, this is nothing but an oblique way of challenging."
Advocate Rajiv Mohan, representing former WFI chief Brij Bhushan Singh, argued that none of the women wrestlers had raised any allegations against Singh before the protest on January 18th. He further contended that there is a hidden agenda behind the allegations to remove Singh from his position as Chief of the WFI.
Advocate Mohan while recalling the first complainant, by Miss VP, said the place of the incident was Mongolia, not India. ''Law is well settled and that courts in India have no jurisdiction to try the case because the incident started and ended there’’ he said in his plea.
In response, Justice Neena Bansal Krishna remarked, "So the incident ended there?" The court granted Singh’s counsel two weeks to prepare a short note outlining all the contentions for setting aside the sexual harassment case and further adjourned the matter to the 26th of September.
The plea was opposed by the counsels for the State and the wrestlers, contending that it was not maintainable.
In response, Advocate Rebecca John, representing the wrestler stated, "This shows there was a deep application of mind". She explained that while six women wrestlers filed complaints, the trial court found that one complaint was time-barred and thus framed charges based on the remaining five victims.
Notably, on August 24th, the Rouse Avenue Court ruled that the female wrestlers testifying as witnesses in the sexual harassment case against Singh are to be considered 'vulnerable witnesses' and should be treated according to the established protocols.
Background
On May 21, the trial court framed charges against Singh, under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) including 354A (sexual harassment), Section 506 (criminal intimidation), and Section 354 (outraging the modesty of women).
This court has found sufficient material on record to frame charges against Brij Bhushan Saran Singh for the offences under Section 354 (outraging modesty of a woman) and 354A (sexual harassment) of the Indian Penal Code regarding victims no. 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5,” the court had said.
In January 2024, the Police requested a Trial Court to frame charges. The police rejected Singh's argument that the incident occurred outside Delhi courts' territorial jurisdiction.
In February 2024, Singh sought to be discharged from a sexual harassment case, arguing that there was a significant delay and that incidents are barred by limitation.
However, on August 23, the court issued an interim order granting security to the wrestlers who had approached the court, fearing for their safety after the Delhi Police withdrew their protection. The court deemed the situation appropriate for such a measure, providing the wrestlers with security until further notice.
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