Kolkata: Extending her support to the protesting wrestlers, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday said a team from Kolkata will visit them and the TMC government is with them in their fight. “Our team will go to meet and support the wrestlers. We are with you, that’s why we have taken out this rally today. It will be continued tomorrow as well. Wrestlers are the pride of our country. We are with you in your fight.” Mamata Banerjee said she led a rally in Kolkata and ‘demanded justice’ for the wrestlers protesting in Delhi.
West Bengal Chief Minister led a rally from Hazra to Ravindra Sadan in Kolkata in support of wrestlers protesting against sexual harassment allegations against Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) President and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh Did.
Addressing the rally, CM Mamta Banerjee said, ‘We are proud of our wrestlers. The rally will continue tomorrow as well.
Will hang myself if found guilty: WFI chief
Meanwhile, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh responded to the allegations of the protesting wrestlers and said that he would “hang” himself if the charges against him were proved. Addressing a public meeting in UP’s Barabanki, the WFI chief said, “If even a single allegation against me is proved, I will hang myself.” Singh took a dig at the wrestlers for announcing they would immerse their medals in the Ganges as a mark of protest.
“It has been four months and they want me to be hanged. The government is not hanging me, so they gathered at Haridwar on Tuesday and threatened to immerse their medals in the Ganges. For me, it’s all this emotional drama,” he said.
Singh said, “If you (wrestlers) have any evidence, present it in the court and I am ready to accept any punishment.” “The Delhi Police is probing the matter. If there is any truth in the allegations (made by the wrestlers), I will be arrested,” he said.
wrestlers give 5 days deadline
Olympic medalist wrestlers Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik along with Vinesh Phogat reached Haridwar in Uttarakhand on Tuesday evening and immersed all their medals, including Olympic medals, in the river Ganges as a mark of their protest. Farmer leader Naresh Tikait intervened on Tuesday and stopped the wrestlers from immersing their medals in the river Ganga and said that a khap meeting would be held on the issue. The wrestlers have also given a time limit of 5 days to solve their problems.
On Sunday, India’s Olympic medalist wrestlers Sakshi Malik, Bajrang Punia along with Vinesh Phogat and Sangeeta Phogat were detained by the Delhi Police as they attempted to march to the new Parliament building, where they had planned to hold a protest. Delhi Police said that the FIR has been registered under sections 147, 149, 186, 188, 332, 353 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), section 3 of the PDPP Act.