Wrestlers React as BJP Substitutes Brij Bhushan With Son in Lok Sabha Elections

BJP has dropped former WFI president & sitting MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh from contesting in 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

Image: X & PTI

BJP on Thursday, 2 May announced that former president of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) and sitting MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, who faces allegations of sexually harassing women wrestlers, will not be running in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Instead, the BJP has chosen Brij Bhushan's son, Karan Bhushan Singh as their candidate for the Kaiserganj seat in Uttar Pradesh. Notably, Karan is the president of the wrestling federation in Uttar Pradesh.

Brij Bhushan, who has been an MP for six terms, faced a big setback in his political career because of the allegations of sexual harassment. This led to protests by some of the country's top women wrestlers.

2020 Tokyo Olympics bronze medalist Wrestler Bajrang Punia, a prominent figure in the protests against Brij Bhushan took to ‘X’ to express his views.

Punia expressed his disappointment, stating, “BJP considers itself the biggest party in the world but out of its lakhs of workers, it gave ticket to Brijbhushan's son, that too when BJP is surrounded by the issue of Prajwal Revanna." 

During the agitations in Punjab and Haryana, people here raise a slogan, “Don't expect anything from governments, take care of yourself.”

Bajrang Punia

Punia attacked the government, lamenting that it's a sad state for the country when daughters who bring pride to the nation with their medals are subjected to public scrutiny, while the sons of those accused of exploiting them are rewarded with political tickets.

It is the misfortune of the country that daughters who win medals will be dragged on the streets and the son of the person who sexually exploits them will be honored by giving him a ticket.

Bajrang Punia

The move has also drawn remarks from Rio Olympics bronze medalist wrestler Sakshi Malik. In a post on X Sakshi wrote, "The daughters of the country lost, Brij Bhushan won."

We all put our careers at stake, and slept on the streets for many days in the sun and rain. Till date Brij Bhushan has not been arrested. We were not demanding anything, we were only demanding justice.

Sakshi Malik

Sakshi also said that by granting a ticket to his son, the morale of millions of daughters across the nation has been shattered.

Leave the arrest, today by giving a ticket to his son you have broken the morale of crores of daughters of the country. If the ticket goes to only one family, is the country's government so weak in front of one man? Only votes are needed in the name of Lord Shri Ram, what about the path shown by him?

Sakshi Malik