A Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act case filed against former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh stands closed, with a Delhi court on Monday (May 26, 2025) accepting the Delhi Police's closure report. A wrestler had accused Brij Bhushan of sexual harassment when she was a minor, but with additional sessions judge Gomti Manocha passing the order saying "cancellation accepted", the matter ends there. (More Sports News)
However, that does not mean the former BJP member of parliament has been exonerated entirely from wrestlers' charges. He is still facing trial in a sexual harassment case lodged by several women wrestlers in another city court.
Cases Against Brij Bhushan
The Delhi Police had registered two FIRs at the Connaught Place police station against Brij Bhushan. One of them was registered under the POCSO Act, and the other under various offences under Indian Penal Code, 1860, Live Law reports.
In the POCSO case, during an in-chamber proceeding held on August 1, 2023, the "minor" had told the judge who was previously holding the court that she was satisfied with Delhi Police's investigation in the case and was not opposed to the closure report.
Delhi Police on June 15, 2023, filed the report seeking cancellation of the case involving the girl after her father made a startling claim midway through the probe that he had made a false complaint of sexual harassment against Singh to get back at him for perceived injustice to the girl, PTI reports.
The police had recommended dropping the POCSO Act case against Brij Bhushan, saying "no corroborative evidence" was found.
As for the second case lodged by six women wrestlers, the police charged him with sexual harassment and stalking. Brij Bhushan then moved the Delhi High Court challenging the FIR, chargesheet and trial court proceedings. The petition is currently pending adjudication in another Delhi court.
It is for this case that a number of high-profile wrestlers, including Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik, Bajrang Punia and Sangeeta Phogat, had protested for months in Delhi in 2023. They had sought the arrest of Brij Bhushan for allegedly sexually harassing several women grapplers.
The victims had alleged that the harassment took place between 2016 and 2019 at the WFI office, at Brij Bhushan바카라™s official residence and also abroad.
(With PTI inputs)
