Wrestling Federation chief and Bharatiya Janata Party MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh said on Sunday that he will contest the Lok Sabha elections in 2024 from his constituency of Kaiserganj in Uttar Pradesh, ANI reported.
Seven complainants, including a minor, have accused Brij Bhushan Singh of demanding sexual favours for professional help on at least two occasions, 15 incidents of molestation and other forms of sexual harassment. Two first information reports have been registered against Singh after the Supreme Court intervened into the matter.
On Sunday, the BJP MP addressed a rally for the first time since the investigation against him started in April. The rally was organised in Gonda district of Uttar Pradesh as part of the BJP’s Mahasampark Abhiyan for the 2024 elections.
“The BJP will win the 2024 elections with absolute majority,” Singh told reporters. “The BJP will win all the seats in Lok Sabha and I will contest the Kaiserganj seat.”
When asked about the allegations against him, Singh refused to comment. “I am waiting for the court order on this case,” he told reporters, according to PTI.
Also read | Molestation, demand for sexual favours: What wrestlers alleged in FIR against Brij Bhushan Singh
Top wrestlers of the country, including Olympics and Commonwealth Games medalists have been protesting in Delhi since April demanding the arrest of Singh. On Wednesday, they decided to suspend the agitation for a week after a meeting with Union Sports Minister Anurag Singh Thakur. The minister said that the government has assured the wrestlers that the investigation against Singh will be completed by June 15 and a chargesheet will be filed.
On Saturday, Olympic medalist Sakshi Malik said that the wrestlers protesting Singh will not participate in the upcoming Asian Games till the matter is resolved. The wrestlers have also alleged that Singh has been pressuring them to take back the complaint and end the protests. Malik added that the father of the minor wrestler was pressured to change his statement that she was not underage at the time she was molested by Singh.
Also read: What explains the silence of India’s sporting icons on wrestlers’ protests?
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