LUCKNOW: Despite being cautioned by the BJP against making statements about wrestlers-turned-politicians Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia, who recently joined the Congress, former BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh on Monday continued his attack on Phogat.
The former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief sarcastically said Congress should consider Vinesh as the party’s chief ministerial candidate in the upcoming Haryana assembly elections, describing her as a "fearless (Dabang) lady" who knew "how to hijack the entire system."
Speaking to the media in Gonda, Singh—who has been accused of sexual harassment by several women wrestlers, including Vinesh—claimed that Phogat knew "the art of winning a lost wrestling bout."
The former WFI chief has been criticising Phogat over the past few days since she joined the Congress and secured a ticket to contest the Haryana elections from Julana.
Referring to last year's wrestlers' protest against him in the national capital, the ex-WFI chief said, "People of the country would surely ask them why they put up such a 'drama' if they had to join Congress," adding, "Why didn’t you slap me when I misbehaved with you?" in response to the sexual harassment allegations against him.
Responding to the chargesheet filed by the Delhi police, the BJP leader said the case needed to be thoroughly investigated. "We will present our side," he said, questioning the credibility of the case.
"How can I be in three places at the same time?" Singh asked, claiming that he was touring Serbia on the date being cited in the case. "At the same time, I am shown to be in Lucknow... the entire matter is flawed and fabricated," he claimed.
A day earlier, Brij Bhushan accused Congress leaders Bhupendra Hooda and his son Dipendra Hooda of conspiring against him by using wrestlers as "pawns," just as Pandavas had put Draupadi at stake. He claimed that if such elements are encouraged in the ruling party, how can one expect women in the country to be safe.
"In the gambling that took place in the Mahabharat, Draupadi was put at stake. The Pandavas lost. The country has still not been able to accept their reasons for doing so," Singh told reporters on Sunday.
"The Hooda family put the honour of daughters and sisters at stake. The future generations will not forgive them for this and they will always be held guilty for this," he added.
Earlier, the BJP leader also volunteered to campaign against Vinesh and Punia in Haryana, just hours after the duo joined the Congress on September 6, proclaiming that both will lose the elections regardless of where they contest from.
Singh had also claimed that their move to join Congress supported his assertion that the sexual harassment allegations against him were part of a "conspiracy orchestrated by the Congress."
Referencing Vinesh's disqualification from her gold medal match in the recently concluded Paris Olympics, the ex-WFI had claimed that Phogat had "cheated" and that God had "punished her" for it.
Notably, Vinesh was disqualified from her Olympic final for failing to make the 50kg weight category by just over 100g on the day of the bout, following a career-defining performance the previous day.
Phogat and Punia, along with fellow Olympian Sakshi Malik, spearheaded the wrestlers' agitation against the then-WFI chief in 2023.
The Delhi Police had filed a chargesheet in the case against Singh on June 15, 2023, under sections 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 354A (sexual harassment), 354D (stalking) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code.
The FIRs narrate several alleged instances of sexual harassment, like inappropriate touching, groping, stalking and intimidation by Singh at different times and places over a decade.
