Women Wrestlers Move Delhi Court, Challenge Brij Bhushan's Acquittal in Harassment Case

New Delhi: Four women wrestlers have moved the Rouse Avenue Courts in Delhi challenging the acquittal of former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh in the sexual harassment case involving women wrestlers.

The appeal challenges the August 3, 2026 judgment of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Ashwini Panwar, who acquitted Singh and former WFI assistant secretary Vinod Tomar. The matter is scheduled to come up before Special Judge Dig Vinay Singh on Saturday, September 26.

What have the wrestlers challenged?

In their appeal, the wrestlers have argued that the acquittal judgment is legally unsustainable and was based on what they describe as an erroneous and selective appreciation of the evidence.

The petition contends that the trial court relied on conjectures and failed to apply established legal principles while assessing the prosecution case.

One of the central grounds raised by the appellants is that the judgment relied on what they describe as “archaic and stereotypical assumptions” about how victims of sexual harassment or assault are expected to behave.

The petitioners have argued that the evidence should instead have been assessed in the circumstances of each complainant rather than against an assumed model of how a victim should respond after an alleged incident.

Why did the trial court acquit Brij Bhushan?

The trial court acquitted Singh after finding that the prosecution had failed to establish the charges against him beyond reasonable doubt.

According to the appeal record, the trial court had considered factors including alleged delays or prolonged silence by complainants, their continued interactions with Singh and contradictions in testimony. The judgment also referred to photographs showing that some complainants had invited Singh to family functions and weddings.

Singh was acquitted of charges under Sections 354, 354A and 506 (Part-I) of the Indian Penal Code. Tomar was acquitted of the criminal-intimidation charge under Section 506 (Part-I).

The acquittal means Singh was not found guilty of the charges in the trial court. The wrestlers' current petition is an attempt to challenge that decision before a higher judicial forum.

What is the background of the case?

The allegations against Singh became a major public issue in 2023, when leading Indian wrestlers, including Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik and Bajrang Punia, staged protests at Delhi's Jantar Mantar.

Singh, who was then a BJP MP and WFI president, was accused by women wrestlers of sexual harassment. The allegations related to incidents said to have occurred between 2016 and 2019 at locations including the WFI office, Singh's official residence and abroad.

Delhi Police subsequently filed a chargesheet against Singh under provisions including Sections 354, 354A, 354D and 506(1) of the IPC. Tomar was also charged, with Section 109 invoked against him.

What happened to the POCSO case?

A separate case had been registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act involving a minor wrestler.

The prosecution later filed a cancellation report in that case. The current appeal concerns the separate case involving the adult women wrestlers and the acquittal of Singh and Tomar.

Wrestlers had announced plans to appeal

Following the August 3 verdict, wrestler Vinesh Phogat said that the women wrestlers had instructed their lawyers to challenge the decision.

Phogat and other prominent wrestlers had expressed disappointment with the acquittal and said that the legal battle would continue.

Singh, meanwhile, welcomed the acquittal and has maintained his position that the allegations against him were unfounded. Following the verdict, he described the decision as an acquittal in his favour.

What happens next?

The wrestlers' challenge is scheduled to be heard on September 26 by Special Judge Dig Vinay Singh at the Rouse Avenue Courts.

The court will consider the challenge to the trial court's acquittal order. The wrestlers' petition raises questions about the assessment of witness testimony, the treatment of complainants' conduct and the legal reasoning used in the August 3 judgment.

The appeal does not itself establish the allegations against Singh. The trial court's acquittal remains the current judicial finding unless and until it is altered by a higher court.