Wrestlers from India are continuing their demonstration against WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh in New Delhi, which is now in its 26th day. In the meantime, they have deliberated and are now gathering at the well-known Ram Lila site in the city.
On Tuesday, the protesting wrestlers suggested that they would take their demonstration to Ram Lila area in order to turn it into a “national movement.” They are demanding the arrest of the former chief of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. Wrestlers from India, including Olympic medalists Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik and the winner of the gold medal at the Asian Games, Vinesh Phogat, have been holding a demonstration at Jantar Mantar for the past 24 days. They are calling for the arrest of Brij Bhushan, who is accused of sexually harassing seven female wrestlers, one of whom is a minor.
Sakshi responded to Bhim Army president Chandrashekhar Azad’s suggestion that the protest should be made into a “national movement” by moving it to Ram Lila maidan, a much larger venue than the current one at Jantar Mantar. She stated, “We will discuss it [moving the protest to the Ram Lila ground] among ourselves and will make a decision about it soon.”
Azad, who had previously joined the protesting wrestlers at the Jantar Mantar on Monday evening but was forced to leave the venue by the police at night, returned to the same on Tuesday with his followers. The authorities had requested Azad to leave the venue at night. He asked the wrestlers to make a decision on whether or not they wanted to make their protest “bigger” by moving it to the Ram Lila ground after May 21, which is the deadline that the khap panchayats had set for the government to take action against Brij Bhushan.
However, Sakshi did not specify whether or not the wrestlers would move the protest location to Ram Lila Maidan entirely or whether or not they would continue their demonstrations at Jantar Mantar. Vinesh said on Monday that the wrestlers at Jantar Mantar had the impression that they were being confined and pushed into a corner, and that they would agitate at other locations. She further claimed that the wrestlers were being followed at the protest location at Jantar Mantar, which is also one of her allegations.
Wrestlers continue to insist that Brij Bhushan be taken into custody, despite the fact that an ad hoc committee established by the Indian Olympic Association has usurped control of the national federation from WFI officials. In his statement, Azad stated that even if the wrestlers and their fans sat at Jantar Mantar, it would not have an impact on the government. We will show our full support for you, the wrestlers, and we won’t make any decisions on your behalf because this is your agitation. However, you are need to make a decision by May 21 regarding whether you wish to remain seated at the protest spot or expand the scope of the campaign.
The wrestlers had organised a march at Connaught Place on Monday in order to achieve their goal of connecting with more people and making them aware of the alleged harassment they had undergone at the hands of Brij Bhushan. This goal was in keeping with the fact that the wrestlers had taken part in the march. They went out in the streets of Delhi once more on Tuesday, this time leading a procession from the Jantar Mantar observatory to the Hanuman temple in the vicinity of Connaught Place. On Monday, the wrestlers came to an agreement that they would take their “agitation global” by contacting Olympic medalists and athletes from other countries in order to bring their predicament to the attention of other athletes.