On 28 May, after the crackdown of the police and the horrendous images of India’s top wrestlers, who had won laurels for their country and the whole county was proud of them when they had come to India with medals and glory, reminded us of the speech of the Prime Minister on the occasion of the Amrit Mahotsav of freedom during the 75th Independence Day.
Our Prime Minister, while addressing countrymen from the ramparts of the Red Fort, said, “Let us show our respect to the sports of India, youth of India and honour the young Indians who bring laurels to the nation. Crores of countrymen are showing respect to the youth of India, especially the athletes who brought honour to India with a thunderous applause. I can be proud that they have not only won our hearts today, but also inspired the youth of India and future generations with their huge achievements.”
The Prime Minister further said, “It is a matter of pride for the country that our daughters are performing in an unprecedented manner in the fields of education, sports, Boards results or Olympics…. There should be a feeling of respect for them and in this, the government, administration; police and justice system will have to perform their duty cent percent….”
But months later, a large police force was pinning the nation’s top female wrestlers to the ground as Prime Minister was presiding over the official opening of the recently built Parliament. These athletes were hauled by police officers to waiting buses and taken into custody for holding a protest outside the new Parliament building.
But most surprisingly, according to an FIR lodged by the protesting wrestlers against the Kaiserganj BJP MP, “I informed the Prime Minister about the repeated sexual, emotional, psychological and physical trauma meted out to me and other female wrestlers by the accused in connivance with his close aides in 2021. The Prime Minister assured me that the Sports Ministry will look into the grievances and I will shortly get a call from the ministry.” The wrestlers had raised the issue with the Prime Minister two years ago during an event to honour the sportspersons.
“One among many popular slogans raised by PM Modi was ‘Bahut huanari pe atyachar, abkibaar Modi sarkar’ during his election campaign. This is a paradox to what is being manifested on the streets of Delhi, where for months our wrestlers have been protesting to demand the arrest of an incumbent MP and Chairman of Wrestler’s Federation of India Brij Bhushan Singh in connection with multiple molestation charges. The government’s stand to protect such alleged central minister is a manifestation that the dispensation is not only against women but also against the spirit of the country. The way these Olympic gold winners were dragged and brutally beaten up showed the true colours of the Modi regime,” said Dr.Maskoor Ahmad Usmani, former AMU Students Union President.
On June 1, The Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) convened a ‘mahapanchayat’ at Sauram village in Muzaffarnagar district to discuss the further line of action regarding the ongoing protest by wrestlers and to evolve a strategy for the same. Khap and farmer leaders from UP, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and Punjab attended the event.
Very recently, The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), in the memorandum sent to the President, the SKM said, “We are submitting this memorandum to your high office to act expeditiously to protect the honour of daughters of India and put an end to this sordid saga that has brought great shame to the nation and her people.”
The players had to even approach the Supreme Court and only after the court began hearing the matter, that the Delhi Police, “much belatedly”, registered two FIRs against the accused, it said.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee rode pillion on a motorcycle in Kolkata on June 1 during a candlelight march to the Gandhi statue in support of wrestlers who are protesting in Delhi. Later she also took part in a rally in the state. Banerjee has come in full support of the protesting wrestlers and is calling out the Delhi Police for mishandling India’s top-notch wrestlers like VineshPhogta, Sakshi Malik, etc.
Ruben Banerjee, former Editor-in-Chief of Outlook magazine, in his piece, “Even Brij Bhushan’s Arrest Will Not Make Narendra Modi Change His Mind,”in The Wireon 31 May, has written, “A majoritarian government in power may have forced people to be more measured in venting their opinion in public, but there is every reason to believe that they are horrified at whatever that is happening. Even some among the most die-hard BJP supporters are mortified, seeing the wrestlers’ protest being so grossly and insensitively mishandled.”
A concerned citizen, Sajid Nomani, said, “Protesting is the right of an individual. Forced detention is not the right decision. These wrestlers were not destroying property or creating ruckus. They peacefully wanted to take their matter to the government. Though the onus would lie on the decision of the court, some government senior officers should have communicated with the protesters. Whatever was to be done had to be done transparently. The accused would have been kept aloof until the investigations were on.”
Nomani further said, “In corporate organisations, when there is an allegation against an individual, they are kept out of the discussion and it is also ensured that they don’t have any option or authority to influence the proceedings, the same was expected in this case by the government. It’s high time for justice to prevail. We do see welcome signs of some strong decisions taken by judges. Let’s hope that this happens for our athletes, too.”
It was really disturbing to note that after the forced crackdown on the protestors and dismantling of their protest site at Jantar Mantar after they were detained by police while trying to protest in front of the New Parliament building, the wrestlers decided to throw their medals into the River Ganga in Haridwar.
“These medals decorating our necks no longer mean anything,”the wrestlers said in a statement, adding that the authorities were “going after the victims” to force them to end their protest. “What is the point of life when you compromise on dignity?” theyadded.
Maharashtra BJP MP Pritam Munde has broken ranks and come out in support of the protesting women wrestlers, saying that their complaints “should be immediately considered”. Pritam is the first BJP MP from the state to voice her support to the sportspersons, who have been demanding the arrest of WFI president Brijbhushan Sharan Singh, also a BJP MP, alleging sexual harassment and exploitation. “Whenever a woman makes a complaint as serious as this, it should be taken into consideration. The concerned authorities should thoroughly investigate the matter. I agree that any action should only be taken after investigation but what is important is you cannot overlook the complaints. If some women wrestlers are raising a serious issue, it should be immediately considered,” Pritam said in Beed, on 30 May. Pritam is the daughter of the late senior BJP leader Gopinath Munde.
Three BJP MPs have so far voiced support for wrestlers.They include Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij, BJP MP Maneka Gandhi, and BJP MP Brijendra Singh. Maneka Gandhi said she was confident that the protesting wrestlers, who are seeking the arrest of outgoing WFI chief over sexual harassment allegations, will get justice.
While the BJP at the Centre have remained silent over the sexual harassment allegation on the BJP MP and WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, a Lok Sabha member of BJP from Hisar, Haryana took to Twitter to say the internationally awarded athletes being forced to immerse their medal in Ganga was ‘absolutely heartbreaking’.
Members of India’s 1983 World Cup-winning cricket team have finally broken their silence and urged the protesting wrestlers to not take any hasty decision and hoped their grievances will be solved soonest.
“We are distressed and disturbed at the unseemly visuals of our champion wrestlers being manhandled. We are also most concerned that they are thinking of dumping their hard-earned medals into river Ganga,” a statement released to PTI by the 1983 World Cup winning team read. The Police made it clear that the wrestlers will not be allowed back at Jantar Mantar.
“Those medals have involved years of effort, sacrifice, determination, and grit and are not only their own but the nation’s pride and joy. We urge them not to take any hasty decision in this matter and also fervently hope that their grievances are heard and resolved quickly. Let the law of the land prevail,” the statement read further.
Earlier, India’s only Olympic gold medallists Neeraj Chopra and Abhinav Bindra too spoke their heart out on the manhandling of the wrestlers. “It pains me a lot. There has to be a better way to deal with this,” tweeted Neeraj.
“Last night was sleepless, haunted by the horrifying images of my fellow Indian wrestlers protesting. It’s high time we establish independent safeguarding measures across sporting organisations. We must ensure that if such situations arise, they are dealt with utmost sensitivity and respect. Every athlete deserves a safe and empowering environment,” Bindra wrote.
Even former Grand Slam champion Sania Mirza extended solidarity with the protesting wrestlers. “As an athlete but more as a woman this is too difficult to watch… they’ve brought laurels to our country and we have all celebrated them, with them… if you have done that then it’s time to now stand with them in this difficult time too… this is a highly sensitive matter and serious allegation.I hope whatever the truth is, justice is served… sooner rather than later,” she said.
A panel of women representing political parties and NGOs, in a press conference on June 1, demanded the arrest of Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. The panel members threatened to intensify their protests over a period of time if Singh was not arrested.
The press conference,organised by Jamaat-e-Islami Mumbai Ladies Wing, was attended by Maharashtra NCP Women’s Cell president Vidya Chavan, Mumbai Aam Aadmi Party president Preeti Sharma Menon, Dr KamaxiBhate of Forum against Oppression of Women, MulabhootAdhikar and Sangharsha Samiti secretary Chitra Rane, and former secretary of government of Maharashtra Ainul Attar.