Brij Bhushan acquitted after 6 wrestlers accused him of sexual harassment; Vinesh Phogat says will file appeal
Olympian Vinesh Phogat, who had disclosed earlier this year that she was among the six complainants, said the wrestlers were disappointed with the court’s decision.
5 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Aug 4, 2026 02:21 AM IST
Former chief of Wrestling Federation of India Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh with his supporters after Delhi court acquitted him in the sexual harassment case filed by six women wrestlers, at his residence in New Delhi on Monday. (Express Photo by Praveen Khanna)
More than three years after six women wrestlers accused him of sexual harassment, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, who was a BJP MP then and also president of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), was acquitted by a Delhi court Monday.
Vinod Tomar, the then Assistant Secretary of the WFI, was also acquitted in the case.
A detailed order is awaited. Of the six complainants, two later turned hostile. In allegations levelled by a third complainant, charges were not framed.
In first remarks after his acquittal by Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Ashwani Panwar of the Rouse Avenue Court, Singh, who was present in the court, later said: “Meri pehli baat sahi hui. Mujhe saamne waale ke baare me pata nahi tha… Meri first pratikriya yehi thi ki main swatah faansi par latak jaaunga… Aaj prasannata ka vishay hai (What I said initially has turned out to be correct. I didn’t know about the people against me… I had said that I would hang myself (if the charges were proved)… Today there’s a reason to be happy).”
“We are deeply saddened that the court did not find Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh guilty in the sexual harassment case filed by the women wrestlers,” she said in a post on X.
“From the very beginning, the entire system, the government, and this establishment were all trying to protect Brij Bhushan,” she said, adding that the fight was not over.
“The women wrestlers have instructed their lawyers to file an appeal against this verdict, and it will be done at the earliest. We have not lost hope, and the wrestlers will continue their fight,” Phogat said.
Story continues below this ad
Public Prosecutor Manish Rawat told The Indian Express, “We will get the judgment (copy) tomorrow. We will examine it and take appropriate steps before higher courts accordingly.”
#WATCH | Delhi | After being acquitted by Rouse Avenue Court in the women wrestlers alleged sexual harassment case, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh says, “… I said this was a conspiracy, and if any of the allegations against me are found to be true, I will hang myself. To this day,… https://t.co/6O1R8HjBeDpic.twitter.com/Btlt3pWJZA
The trial in the case was completed three years after a chargesheet was filed against Singh in the case. A total of 32 prosecution witnesses were examined.
Two complainants had alleged that Singh touched them inappropriately and sexually using the pretext of checking their breathing patterns.
On April 28, 2023, an FIR was registered at the Connaught Place police station against Singh and Tomar. A separate FIR was also registered in the same police station for POCSO offences on the complaint of a minor victim.
On June 15, 2023, police filed a 1,500-page chargesheet against Singh for alleged sexual harassment, assault and stalking of six women wrestlers, and mentioned statements from at least 22 witnesses across four states, including wrestlers, a referee, a coach and a physiotherapist.
Story continues below this ad
On the same day, police filed a report requesting the cancellation of the POCSO case against Singh after the minor and her father withdrew their allegations.
On August 1, 2023, the father of the minor complainant told the court that they were satisfied with the police investigation which found “no evidence” against Singh.
In May 2024, a Delhi court framed charges against Singh under IPC sections relating to assault or criminal force to a woman with intent to outrage her modesty and sexual harassment.
In May 2025, a Delhi court accepted the POCSO case cancellation report.
Story continues below this ad
The defence team, led by Advocates Rajiv Mohan, Rishabh Bhati and Rehan Khan, had argued that the complainants kept changing their statements.
They claimed that the complainants had either changed the place or the date of the alleged incident or the accused wasn’t present at the place where the alleged incident took place. The defence also flagged the delay in lodging the cases. Some incidents, they maintained, were 7 to 8 years old.
On the other hand, Public Prosecutor Manish Rawat said that from the framing of charges until the trial, the statements of the victims were consistent. He also submitted that other public witnesses corroborated their statements.
Senior Advocate Rebecca John, assisted by Bhavook Chauhan, Harsh Bora and Anushka Baruah, who represented four complainants, had submitted that they had extensively testified about various incidents of sexual assault and harassment at the hands of the accused and that these testimonies had not been shaken in cross-examination.
Story continues below this ad
“Corroborative witnesses, who witnessed some of these incidents, were also examined and they fully supported the version of the women wrestlers,” John had said.
“In a sexual harassment case… women may complain about it much after the incident. They (the complainants in this case) essentially came from rural backgrounds. The head of the Federation was a very powerful man who, instead of encouraging them, was sexually exploiting them. Given the power differential, it was only natural that they were scared of reporting these incidents spontaneously,” she had said.
Nirbhay Thakur is a Senior Correspondent with The Indian Express who primarily covers district courts in Delhi and has reported on the trials of many high-profile cases since 2023.
Professional Background
Education: Nirbhay is an economics graduate from Delhi University.
Beats: His reporting spans the trial courts, and he occasionally interviews ambassadors and has a keen interest in doing data stories.
Specializations: He has a specific interest in data stories related to courts.
Core Strength: Nirbhay is known for tracking long-running legal sagas and providing meticulous updates on high-profile criminal trials.
Recent notable articles
In 2025, he has written long form articles and two investigations. Along with breaking many court stories, he has also done various exclusive stories.
1) A long form on Surender Koli, accused in the Nithari serial killings of 2006. He was acquitted after spending 2 decades in jail. was a branded man. Deemed the “cannibal" who allegedly lured children to his employer’s house in Noida, murdered them, and “ate their flesh” – his actions cited were cited as evidence of human depravity at its worst. However, the SC acquitted him finding various lapses in the investigation. The Indian Express spoke to his lawyers and traced the 2 decades journey.
2) For decades, the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has been at the forefront of the Government’s national rankings, placed at No. 2 over the past two years alone. It has also been the crucible of campus activism, its protests often spilling into national debates, its student leaders going on to become the faces and voices of political parties of all hues and thoughts. The Indian Express looked at all court cases spanning over two decades and did an investigation.
3) Investigation on the 700 Delhi riots cases. The Indian Express found that in 17 of 93 acquittals (which amounted to 85% of the decided cases) in Delhi riots cases, courts red-flag ‘fabricated’ evidence and pulled up the police.
Signature Style
Nirbhay’s writing is characterized by its procedural depth. He excels at summarizing 400-page chargesheets and complex court orders into digestible news for the general public.
X (Twitter): @Nirbhaya99 ... Read More
