Opinion Express View on chargesheet against Brij Bhushan Singh: Wheels of justice 

The charges involve sections 354, 354(A), 354(D) – assault or use of criminal force with intent to outrage a woman’s modesty, sexual harassment, stalking. Between January and June, an arduous distance had to be covered by these women just to get the system to take note, and for due process to get off the ground. It involved sleeping in the open at Jantar Mantar, and staying with their demand for justice in the face of stony indifference from the government and tepid support, at best, from Opposition parties, civil society, other sportspersons.

It took having their hopes dashed by the government-appointed oversight committee and a knock on the Supreme Court’s doors just for registration of the FIR. It included manhandling by Delhi Police when they wanted to march to the new Parliament and an agonising huddle on the banks of the Ganga as they debated whether or not to immerse their medals in the river – they didn’t.

Through it all, these women who have done India proud in arenas within the country and abroad kept their spirit unbowed and unbent, no matter the odds stacked against them. The onus is now on the government and the police and the court.

Now that the needle has finally moved on the case, the lawful process must be insulated from pressure, fear or favour. At stake is the trust of these women wrestlers in the justice system, and also of all those ordinary citizens who may not be speaking, but are nevertheless listening and watching.

The concern articulated by Sakshi Malik, who has questioned the manner in which police have dealt with the POCSO complaint, must be addressed. If action had been taken when the minor’s statement was first recorded before a magistrate, she would not have withdrawn her complaint under pressure perhaps, and others may also have come forward, she has said. Malik is right – these struggles, long and painful, often take an unbearable toll, most of all, on the victim.
This is an important case that will be keenly watched. The women wrestlers have shown that they will not give up or stand down.

The Delhi Police chargesheet should not be a box the authorities have checked, it should be the start of due process that has been denied to the women wrestlers, that will, hopefully soon, lead to justice. Now it is the system’s turn to do right by them.