Panel led by woman boxer to probe sexual abuse in Indian wrestling

New Delhi, Jan 23 (EFE).- A committee led by well-known Indian boxer Mary Kom will probe the sexual abuse accusations in the Wrestling Federation of India, the authorities said on Monday, following days of protest led by some top Indian wrestlers.

Sports Minister Anurag Thakur told the media that the panel would submit its report after a month after talking to all parties.

“Till then, all the day-to-day decisions and workings of WFI (Wrestling Federation of India) will be taken care of by this committee,” Thakur said.

The appointment of the panel led by Kom, one of the most recognized athletes in India and a bronze medalist at the 2012 London Olympics, comes after wrestler Vinesh Phogat made startling claims that women wrestlers had suffered alleged sexual abuse for years in the WFI.

Phogat, a Commonwealth Games and Asian Games gold medalist, named the federation president, Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) politician Brijbhushan Sharan Singh.

Phogat said the alleged sexual abuse and harassment were also committed by coaches even as the federation knew about it.

The claims were supported by prominent wrestlers Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik, and dozens of athletes during four days of protests in the Indian capital.

They demanded Singh’s resignation.

Singh denied the allegations and refused to resign, pointing out that the athletes had not named the alleged victims, calling the accusations a political conspiracy. EFE

daa-ssk