"Will sit... till we don't get justice,": Vinesh Phogat
Apr 23, 2023
New Delhi [India], April 23 : Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat, who is among the ace wrestlers protesting in Jantar Mantar on Sunday, broke down and asserted that the wrestling community will not go "till we don't get justice".
Having waited for three months, Star wrestlers again started their protest against Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh on Sunday after and said that they took the step after alleging that no action has been taken in the matter and said that the FIR has not been registered against WFI chief.
"We will sit here day and night. Till the time we don't get justice. We will sit here," Vinesh Phogat got emotional while speaking to the media.
"It is about our safety and if we international medal-winning female wrestlers are not safe then who is safe? We are from a wrestling family and we are trying to save it till our last breath," Phogat added.
When asked about the working of the committe, Vinesh said she is unaware of the working of the committee.
"We don't know what the committe is doing. We are asking for justice and we came in front of the entire public to ask for justice and here we are again."
"It's been 3 months, and we haven't got justice, that's why we are protesting again. We demand justice, FIR has not been registered yet. We are grateful that DCW is supporting us" Wrestler Vinesh Phogat on DCW's notice to Delhi Police for reportedly failing to register an FIR in sexual harassment case of women wrestlers.
Ace India wrestler Sakshi Malik also broke down while interacting with the media as wrestlers protest at Jantar Mantar.
"We wanted to file a sexual harassment FIR against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. Two days ago we got a complaint filed but FIR hasn't been registered yet. There are 7 female wrestlers and one of them is a minor. We want the investigation to happen fast. It is a sensitive matter. We are being framed as liars which we cannot bear. We are waiting for two and a half months now but no one is listening. People are saying we are spent force that is why we are protesting. We just won a medal at CWG 2022," Sakshi Malik told the media at Jantar Mantar.
It is pertinent to mention that top Indian wrestlers, including Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat, Ravi Dahiya, and Sakshi Malik, held a sit-in protest in Jantar Mantar in January this year, demanding that Brij Bhushan be removed from the head office and Wrestling Federation of India be disbanded. They had accused the body and its chief of sexual harassment and mistreatment of wrestlers.
The wrestlers protested against the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) in January this year.
Following the protest, in January, the Union Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports announced the formation of an 'oversight committee' to probe allegations levelled against the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) and its chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and other coaches. The committee was given the task of submitting a report on the issue to the ministry.
Olympic medalist Mary Kom is heading the Oversight Committee. Former wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt, former shuttler Trupti Murgunde, SAI member Radhica Sreeman, ex-CEO of the Target Olympic Podium Plan Rajesh Rajagopalan, and CWG gold medalist Babita Phogat are the other members of the Mary Kom-led committee.
