New Delhi, Oct 9 (IANS): A Delhi court on Friday adjourned the hearing on an appeal filed by four women wrestlers challenging the acquittal of former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) President Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and former WFI Assistant Secretary Vinod Tomar in an alleged sexual harassment and intimidation case.
Special Judge Dig Vinay Singh of the Rouse Avenue Courts granted more time to the respondents and listed the matter for further hearing on October 28.
Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh was physically present before the Rouse Avenue Court’s sessions court on Friday.
The appeal has been filed against the August 3 judgment of the trial court, which acquitted Brij Bhushan and Tomar after holding that the prosecution had failed to establish the charges against them beyond a reasonable doubt.
The four women wrestlers have contended in their appeal that the trial court’s judgment is not sustainable in law and that the evidence on record was incorrectly assessed.
The appeal also challenges Vinod Tomar’s acquittal in relation to the allegation of criminal intimidation under Section 506 Part I of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) levelled by one of the complainants.
The Rouse Avenue Court had, on September 28, issued notice to Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and Vinod Tomar on the appeal and sought their responses by October 9. Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Ashwini Panwar of the Rouse Avenue Courts had, on August 3, acquitted the former WFI chief and Tomar, holding that the prosecution had failed to establish the charges against them beyond a reasonable doubt.
The case dates back to January 2023, when several wrestlers, including Olympians Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik and Bajrang Punia, staged a protest at Jantar Mantar, accusing Singh of sexual harassment and intimidation.
The wrestlers had demanded Brij Bhushan’s resignation as WFI chief and sought the dissolution of the federation. Following a complaint to the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) President P.T. Usha, an inquiry committee comprising eminent sportspersons, including Mary Kom and Yogeshwar Dutt, was constituted. The Union Sports Ministry subsequently suspended the functioning of the WFI amid the controversy.
In May 2024, the Rouse Avenue Court framed charges against the accused, finding sufficient material to proceed against the former WFI chief on charges relating to sexual harassment and outraging the modesty of five women wrestlers.
Brij Bhushan had pleaded not guilty and claimed trial, maintaining his innocence.
The present case is distinct from the separate POCSO case lodged by a minor wrestler against Brij Bhushan. In May 2025, a Delhi court accepted the Delhi Police’s cancellation report in the case after the probe agency stated that it had found no corroborative evidence to support the allegations.
Following Brij Bhushan’s acquittal, wrestler Vinesh Phogat and Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist Bajrang Punia had expressed disappointment with the verdict, saying that the women wrestlers would challenge the decision in a higher court. Brij Bhushan had welcomed the verdict, describing it as a “victory of the junior players”.
