The closing of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) case against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh on May 26, 2025, by a Delhi court has left a bitter taste in the mouth of those who believed India’s justice system would hold the powerful to account. What began over a year ago as a courageous outcry from India’s most decorated female wrestlers, demanding justice against the former chief of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), has now wound down to a courtroom whimper. The contrast between the state’s overwhelming force against protestors and the underwhelming institutional response to serious allegations of sexual harassment, assault, and intimidation, offers a troubling mirror to our democracy.
From the Mat to the Streets
On April 23, 2023, a powerful and unprecedented protest took shape in New Delhi. Wrestlers who had brought pride to the nation—Sakshi Malik, Vinesh Phogat, and Bajrang Punia among them—gathered at Jantar Mantar. They weren’t seeking funding or rewards. They were seeking justice. Their allegation: Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, then WFI chief and a six-term BJP MP from Kaiserganj, had sexually harassed several female wrestlers, including a minor.
Despite initial silence, the protest forced the hand of the authorities. On April 28, 2023, the Delhi Police registered two First Information Reports (FIRs) against Brij Bhushan. One under the stringent POCSO Act, pertaining to the complaint by the minor wrestler, and another invoking IPC Sections 354, 354A, 354D, and 506, based on complaints from six other women wrestlers.
Defamation as Defence
In response, Brij Bhushan and his supporters deployed a well-practised political tactic: counterattack. The wrestlers were accused of staging a drama. Allegations flew that they were acting at the behest of opposition parties. Singh publicly stated that if a single allegation was proven, he would hang himself. Meanwhile, social media campaigns and friendly TV debates mocked the protestors’ integrity, questioning why they remained silent earlier, undermining the gravity of sexual harassment with political whataboutery.
Even the protest site, which had become a symbol of resistance, faced systematic erosion. On May 28, 2023, the Delhi Police detained the wrestlers as they attempted to march towards the new Parliament building. Their protest tents were dismantled. The message was loud and clear: dissent would not be tolerated, even from national champions.
Legal Labyrinths and Convenient Closures
On June 15, 2023, the Delhi Police filed a closure report in the POCSO case, citing a lack of prosecutable evidence. A crucial detail came to light: the father of the minor wrestler had requested withdrawal of the case. Whether this withdrawal was voluntary or the result of immense political and social pressure remains unanswered. For nearly a year, the case lingered in limbo.
Finally, on May 26, 2025, a Delhi court accepted the closure report. The judge cited inconsistent statements by the complainant and the father’s request to withdraw the complaint. The charges under the POCSO Act were dropped. However, a separate chargesheet against Brij Bhushan, based on the adult wrestlers’ complaints, remains pending.
The Iron Fist of Power
What stands out starkly is the iron fist with which the state cracked down on peaceful protestors, and the velvet gloves that seemed to handle Brij Bhushan’s case. Surveillance, detentions, and smear campaigns greeted those who raised their voices. Meanwhile, the accused enjoyed the support of a ruling party that neither distanced itself from him nor launched an internal inquiry.
It is hard not to notice that Singh remains politically relevant. Even after stepping down as WFI chief, he maintained influence through his proxies. Elections came and went, but Brij Bhushan’s footprint remained firm.
A Pattern of Institutional Disregard
This is not an isolated episode. Rather, it is part of a troubling pattern in recent years, where allegations against powerful figures are stonewalled until they quietly fade from public discourse. Institutions do not rise to the occasion; instead, they retreat, handing over moral authority to protestors, only to criminalise them later.
The wrestlers, in a tragic irony, faced more investigation than the man they accused. Their medals, returned in anguish; their careers, left in limbo; their demands, met with silence.
What the Closure Doesn’t Close
The acceptance of the closure report in the POCSO case is not an exoneration. It is a bureaucratic end to one part of a much larger story. The IPC charges still stand, and the question of justice remains unresolved.
If anything, this case shows how power, performance, and patriarchy combine in today’s India to shield the influential and silence the vulnerable. In a country that lauds its athletes when they win gold, the moment they ask for dignity and rights, they become expendable.
The Brij Bhushan saga is not just about a man or an institution. It is about the values we claim to uphold and the ease with which we abandon them when power is at stake. The wrestlers stood their ground. But in failing them, the system has lost its balance.
And that, perhaps, is the gravest fall of all.
