The World Briefly
June 21, 2023Round One
India
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Indian authorities filed charges this week against the country’s wrestling chief, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, following months-long protests by female wrestlers over claims of sexual harassment, CNN reported.
Police in the capital New Delhi said Singh has been accused of assault, stalking, and sexual harassment. He has not been taken into custody.
Singh – who is also a senior politician of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) – has denied the allegations and has accused India’s opposition of staging the demonstrations.
India’s top male and female athletes, including Olympic medalists, have taken to the streets in recent months accusing Singh of sexual harassment and demanding his arrest.
The issue escalated to the point that some wrestlers vowed to throw their Olympic medals into the Ganges river – a holy waterway for India’s Hindu majority.
The demonstrations have become a sticking point for the government after opposition politicians and protesters accused authorities of blocking the course of justice and of a heavy-handed approach in dispersing the demonstrations.
Delhi police came under fire for being slow in responding to the allegations, but launched a probe in April following an intervention by India’s Supreme Court.
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