'Sabka saath nahin, Brij Bhushan ka saath': Kapil Sibal takes a dig at Centre for being silent on wrestlers' protest

Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Saturday slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the ruling BJP for being "silent" over the sexual harassment charges levelled by wrestlers against outgoing Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.

The senior advocate, who represented the wrestlers in the Supreme Court said the "message" is enough for those investigating the matter.

The attack by Sibal, came as voices calling for the arrest of Singh, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP, grew louder.

In a tweet, Sibal said, "Brij Bhushan Singh, with mounting evidence, public outcry, still not arrested. PM silent, HM silent, BJP silent, RSS silent. Message enough for those investigating!" "Sabka saath nahin Brij Bhushan ka saath! (Not with everyone but with Brij Bhushan)," Sibal said in a play on the government's slogan "sabka sath, sabka vikas, sabka vishwas".

Sibal earlier took a jibe at Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and said that the WFI chief’s threat to kill himself sounds familiar to PM Modi’s comments after the 2016 demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. 

Sibal, a Union minister in the UPA-1 and UPA-2 governments, left the Congress in May last year and was elected to the Rajya Sabha as an Independent with the backing of the Samajwadi Party (SP). He has launched the non-partisan "Insaaf" platform to combat injustice.

The FIRs lodged on the basis of complaints from six women wrestlers and the father of a minor narrate several alleged instances of sexual harassment, inappropriate touching, groping, stalking and intimidation by Singh at different times and places, including in foreign countries, over a decade.

Meanwhile, Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Naresh Tikait on Thursday held a mahapanchayat in Muzaffarnagar’s Soram village to discuss the ongoing protest by wrestlers against the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh over sexual harassment charges. 

He said that a Khap representative will meet the President and the government. "Khap and these women (protesting wrestlers) won't be defeated. More decisions will be taken at Kurukshetra tomorrow (Friday)," he said.

Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur had also reacted on the issue by saying the Centre was sensitively handling the issue of protesting wrestlers. He said the government had accepted the wrestlers' demand for a committee to probe their allegations and an investigation was underway. 

"The government is handling the issue sensitively. The wrestlers asked for an FIR which has been filed by the Delhi police. A committee of administrators has been set up by the Wrestling Federation of India as they demanded that its office-bearers shouldn't be allowed to function," Thakur said.

Also Read: Odisha train accident: PM Narendra Modi to reach Odisha today, will visit Balasore and Cuttack