Delhi Police registers FIR against protesting wrestlers, presses charges for ’rioting’

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, May 29, 2023: Delhi Police on Sunday registered an FIR against the organisers of the wrestlers’ protest, including Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik and Bajrang Punia, under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

 

"A case has been registered against wrestlers Bajrang Punia, Sakshi Malik, Vinesh Phogat and other organisers of the protest. A few wrestlers had come to Jantar Mantar at night to protest, they were denied permission and were sent back," said Delhi Police.

The action by the Delhi Police comes hours after the protesting wrestlers were detained by the cops while marching towards the new Parliament building.

Reacting to the FIR, Vinesh Phogat said a new history was being written.

“Delhi Police takes seven days to file an FIR against Brij Bhushan for sexual harassment but did not take even seven hours to file an FIR against us for carrying out a peaceful protest. Has the country slipped into a dictatorship? The entire world is watching how the government is treating its players. A new history is being written,” said Vinesh Phogat on her social media handle.

Wrestler Bajrang Punia was also detained by security personnel while heading towards the Parliament. The protesters called it a ’peaceful’ march, saying that it was their right to take to the streets. Punia also took to Twitter and questioned his police custody.

“Police have kept me in their custody. Not telling anything. Have I committed any crime? Brij Bhushan should have been in jail. Why have we been kept in prison?” asked Punia.

Khap panchayats of various states, farmers and supporting wrestlers protesting at Jantar Mantar, had announced for a ‘mahila samman mahapanchayat’ near the Parliament building.

Launching a crackdown on the protesters, the police also removed the tents from Jantar Mantar and cleared the protest site.

A case has been registered under Section 147 (guilty of rioting), Section 149 (unlawful assembly), 186 (obstructing public servant from discharging duty), 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 332 (voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty) and 353 (criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) of the Indian Penal code. The protestors also face charges under Section 3 of the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act.

The grapplers have been seeking the arrest of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. The protestors have levelled an allegation of sexual harassment against the WFI chief.

Courtesy: India Today