Anita Sheoran, a wrestler, is one of the primary witnesses in the sexual harassment lawsuit brought against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. And she is running to succeed the BJP MP as president of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI).
On Monday, the final day for submitting nominations for the August 12 elections, Anita Sheoran, the gold medallist from the 2010 New Delhi Commonwealth Games, filed her paperwork to run.
She will be the first woman to lead an ancient Indian sport with roots in all-male akhadas if she succeeds. Although Indian women began to gain recognition outside around the turn of the century, men have always made the decisions.
Anita Sheoran is the only female on the 50-member list of voters and candidates, even for these historic WFI elections. The 38-year-old will probably face off against Olympian Jai Prakash, the head of the Delhi wrestling association, and Sanjay Singh Bhola of Uttar Pradesh from Brij Bhushan’s faction.
Both of these candidates have a history with Brij Bhushan, who six female wrestlers have accused of sexual harassment. A Delhi court is hearing the case against the former WFI director, and a week ago, it granted him bail.
The Brij Bhushan faction held a conference on Monday in the capital and stated that at least 20 out of the 25 state units support them.
“We are certain that we can succeed. We will decide on the final candidate for the position in the coming days, but our decision will be unanimous,” said Jai Prakash according to the Indian Express.
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Anita Sheoran in WFI chief race
Anita Sheoran, on the other hand, is the head of the opposition panel and is rumoured to have the support of the wrestlers who are protesting, who the government claimed would have a significant influence in who holds the top positions in the WFI.
She was a witness who supported the claims of sexual harassment made against Brij Bhushan.
The CWG gold medallist revealed to The Indian Express in June that one of the complainants had contacted her from a competition abroad to “share” the story of the event in which Brij Bhushan reportedly summoned her to his room and “forcibly” hugged her. Anita Sheoran declined to respond when contacted on Monday.
Prem Chand Lochab, the secretary of the Railway Sports Promotion Board (RSPB), is a candidate for the position of secretary general and is on Anita’s panel. Dushyant Sharma, a former wrestler from J&K, has submitted his name for the positions of vice president and treasurer. The panel has selected Haryana-based hotelier Devender Kadian for the position of senior vice president.
From Brij Bhushan’s side, candidates for the positions of secretary general, treasurer, and senior vice president include Chandigarh’s Darshan Lal, Satyapal Singh Deshwal of Uttarakhand, and Asit Kumar Saha of West Bengal.
Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik, and Bajrang Punia, three wrestlers who had been protesting, received assurances from the government in June that no members of Brij Bhushan’s family would be allowed to occupy any positions in the new body.
As a result, Brij Bhushan and his son Karan were not listed on the electoral roster, and even though Vishal Singh, the son-in-law of the BJP MP, will represent Bihar, he is not running for any office.
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