Madan B. Lokur, a former judge of the Supreme Court, criticised the Delhi Police on Tuesday for how it handled the cases brought against Brij Bhusan Sharan Singh, the outgoing president of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), and how it handled the wrestlers who were protesting and against whom FIRs had been filed.
Justice Lokur stated during a panel discussion on ‘Wrestlers’ Struggle: Accountability of Institutions’ that as long as the grapplers wait for justice, the victims are being ‘re-victimized.’
‘This is a clear case of re-victimisation…. The wrestlers have said they are under pressure,’ he said.
The retired judge of the Supreme Court claimed that the BJP MP Singh’s complaints against the wrestlers were unanswered, forcing them to take to the streets. She also criticised the Delhi police for holding up the process.
In addition, Justice Lokur emphasised that the WFI lacked a committee to handle sexual harassment claims, which is illegal.
‘When the protest started in January, it was not like they decided to go to Jantar Mantar straight away. The sexual harassment had started much earlier. They made complaints, but there was no complaints committee in the wrestling federation,’ he said.
Justice Lokur also discussed the wrestlers’ view of the threat and emphasised that the Supreme Court had ruled that security should be provided for them.
‘We saw the ugly scenes that happened on May 28 … the victims are being told that they are criminals because they staged a protest,’ he said.
In the case of the wrestlers, Supreme Court attorney Brinda Grover contended that the State had broken the law.
‘It is mandatory under law to have an internal complaints committee. The State is in breach of law by not having an ICC in the wrestling federation,’ she said.
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