Several farmers have come in support of the protesting wrestlers in Delhi who have stood up against Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief and BJP MP Brij Bhushan over allegations of sexual exploitation
Rakesh Tikait-led Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) has decided to gherao the Delhi border on June 5 if the Union Government doesn’t meet the demands of the protesting farmers within five days
This happened a day after the protesting wrestlers including Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik and Bajrang Punia came to Haridwar to immerse their national and international medals including the Olympic medals in the river in protest of the lack of action by authorities
Rakesh Tikait stopped the wrestlers from doing so and asked them to give him five days to solve the situation. Following this, the wrestlers handed over their medals to Tikait and came back to Delhi
Rakesh Tikait further said that if the government doesn’t take any action, the Khap panchayats of Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan will cut off the milk and vegetable supplies to Delhi and NCR
On May 28, hours after the inauguration of the new Parliament building in Delhi’s Central Vista, the wrestlers, who had been protesting at Jantar Mantar, started marching towards the building. The Delhi Police, however, detained them
30 Indian wrestlers, including Olympic medalists, Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik, Anshu Malik, and Bajrang Punia launched a protest in January 2023 against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and its coaches for sexually abusing several wrestlers and players for many years. They called for disbanding the organisation
The wrestlers’ plan to throw away their medals into the Ganga river in protest against the alleged sexual assault claims against Brij Bhushan Singh has historic echoes. Most importantly, it brings to mind the time when legendary boxer Muhammad Ali threw his medal into a river to protest against racism
Muhammad Ali, who was born as Cassius Clay, won a Gold medal at the 1960 Olympics. When the boxer returned back to his racially-charged hometown in Louisville, Kentucky, he was refused service at a restaurant which was only meant for white people. As a symbolic protest against racism, Ali threw his Olympic medal into the Ohio river. Years later, in 1996, Mohammad Ali was presented with a replica during the Atlanta Olympics