[ad_1]
Vinesh Phogat and other wrestlers called off the protest on Saturday.© NDTV
After getting assurances that their grievances would be addressed, wrestlers called off their protest following the second round of meeting with union sports minister Anurag Thakur that ended after midnight on Saturday. The minister assured the wrestlers, which included big names like Olympic medallists Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik, World Championship medallist Vinesh Phogat, among others that investigation with regards to their allegations of sexual misconduct against Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) coaches and president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh will be completed in four weeks. An oversight committee will be formed to investigate the allegations, Thakur added. WFI chief Brij Bhushan will step aside till the time the oversight committee completes its investigation.
“It has been decided that an oversight committee will be formed. Names for which will be announced tomorrow. The committee will complete its investigation within four weeks. The wrestlers put forward their demands. I have assured them that appropriate steps will be taken. All allegations of sexual harassment and financial misappropriation will be probed,” Thakur said in a press conference on Saturday.
“Till the investigation is over, he (Singh) will step aside and co-operate with the investigation and the oversight committee will run the day-to-day affairs of WFI.”
Wrestler Bajrang Punia, who has been a leading figure in the protest, thanked Thakur for his prompt response. “We have received assurances from the respected minister. I thank you. We protested only as a last resort. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has really helped our game,” Punia said.
Earlier, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) formed a seven-member committee to probe wrestlers’ allegations of sexual harassment against federation president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. Boxing great and Olympic medallist Mary Kom will be the chairman of the panel. Indian Weightlifting Federation of India (IWLF) president Sahdev Yadav, archer Dola Banerjee, Olympic medal winning wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt are part of the panel among others. The committee will also have two lawyers. The panel will first talk with the protesting wrestlers and then the WFI before reaching any conclusion.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Featured Video Of The Day
Fight With Federation, Not Government: Wrestlers Amid #Metoo Protests
Topics mentioned in this article
[ad_2]
Source link