Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh’s startling ‘dabdaba tha, dabdaba rahega’ remark following the election results presents a clear picture of who calls the shots in the federation
Indian wrestlers Sangeeta Phogat (L), and Vinesh Phogat (C) are detained by the police while attempting to march to India's new parliament during a protest against Brij Bhushan Singh in May this year. Pic/AFP
Key Highlights
- An image of a heavily garlanded Brij Bhushan flashing a victory sign last week says enough
- A teary-eyed Sakshi Malik retired and Bajrang Punia returned his Padma Shri award
- The saga took a new turn after the sports ministry suspended the newly-elected body
India’s top Olympians riveted the world’s attention this January, as wrestler after wrestler told of nightmare ordeals they experienced at the hands of former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president and BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. The national body has since confronted a range of accusations that men with influence over women athletes have repeatedly used their power and position to harass and abuse them.
The ongoing reckoning with the Brij Bhushan case comes amid a larger outpouring of incidents about sexual assault and harassment in all arenas of sports, from the former president of the Spanish football federation, Luis Rubiales, being accused of ‘seemingly forcefully kissing’ a midfielder at the FIFA Women's World Cup to the former USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar abusing thousands in the guise of medical treatment, and the people in power negligent and complicit in protecting such perpetrators.