NEW DELHI: Olympic medalist, and Padamshree awardee Sakshi Malik on Sunday said that it was a 'sad day' in the history of Indian Sports.
"A sexual abuser and goon, Brij Bhushan, is sitting in Parliament today and we are being dragged on the road. Sad day for Indian sports," Malik said.
TNIE reporter, Rajesh Kumar Thakur, who was at the inaugural ceremony claimed that the BJP MP and sexual harassment accused Brij Bhushan attended the inauguration of the new Parliament building complex.
Bhushan was seen seated at the back row of the hall in the Parliament. He was also seen greeting the other leaders at the ceremony but was allegedly avoided by them.
Wrestlers forcibly detained
The Delhi police on Sunday detained Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik and Bajrang Punia after they breached the security cordon while trying to move towards the new Parliament building for a women's 'Mahapanchayat'. Immediately after, the wrestlers were pushed into buses and taken to an unknown location.
The agitating wrestlers, including the likes of Olympic medallists Bajrang Punia, Sakshi and Asian Games gold winner Vinesh have been demanding the arrest of the outgoing WFI President who they have accused of sexually harassing several women grapplers.
Chaotic scenes were witnessed at Jantar Mantar as wrestlers and police officers shoved and pushed each other when Vinesh Phogat and her cousin sister Sangeeta Phogat tried to breach the barricades. At one stage, the protestors even entered into arguments with the Delhi Police personnel.
Vinesh provided a strong resistance against her detention and Sangeeta clung to her cousin sister while lying on the road as the struggle continued for a few dramatic minutes. The police officials dragged and lifted them into buses along with several other wrestlers and their supporters.
Dependra Pathak, Special CP, Law and Order, Delhi Police, who was also at the spot to monitor the situation, said that the wrestlers have been detained for violating law and order. "We will take legal action after an inquiry in due course of time," the senior police officer said.
Camps of wrestlers removed
The cops could be seen removing the tents under whose shade the protestors used to sit. The cops could also be seen untying the ropes around the bamboo structures on which a makeshift camp i.e., a tarpaulin was placed. The mattresses on which the wrestlers used to sit were also piled up.
The champion wrestlers had resumed their agitation at Delhi's Jantar Mantar against the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh on April 23, demanding his arrest.
The Delhi Police had beefed up security at Jantar Mantar following protesting wrestlers' call for a 'Mahila Samman Mahapanchayat' before the new Parliament Building on Sunday.
The new building was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi early this morning.
Thousands of police personnel were deployed and multiple layers of barricades were in place in the Lutyens' Delhi.
The wrestlers, staging a sit-in protest at Jantar Mantar which is about two kilometers from the Parliament building, had said they will go ahead with their 'Mahapanchayat' at any cost. The wrestlers had said that the use of force by police will not deter them from going ahead with their peaceful march and the Mahapanchayat.
However, the police had made it clear in the morning that no protester will be allowed to move towards the Parliament since they have not been granted permission for 'Mahapanchat' and the wrestlers should not be involved in any "anti-national activity".
According to the live location shared by one of the wrestlers' supporters from the moving bus, they were being moved towards the Tikri border.
In another video shared by the wrestlers, Sakshi's husband Satyawart Kadian and Jiternder Kinha were seen shouting the slogan - 'Inqilab Jindabad' along with several others as the police vehicle whisked them away.
Meanwhile, farmers' leader Rakesh Tikait reached Delhi to extend his support to the protesting wrestlers but he was not allowed to cross the Ghazipur border. "I was heading towards Jantar Mantar but the police did not allow me to go. Our protest will continue. This movement is successful and we will share our next course of action in some time," Tikait told reporters at the Ghazipur border.
(With inputs from Ujwal Jalali, Rajesh Kumar Thakur, PTI)