Delhi's Rouse Avenue court on Thursday granted bail to outgoing Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief and BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and the federation's assistant secretary Vinod Tomar Singh in the sexual harassment case registered by women wrestlers. The court granted Brij Bhushan and Vinod Tomar Singh bail on a personal bond of Rs 25,000 each.
The court also directed the accused not to leave the country without its prior permission and not offer any inducement to witnesses in the case. The court heard arguments from the counsel appearing for the accused and the prosecution, as well as the complainants.
The lawyer representing Delhi Police said he was neither opposing nor supporting the bail application and wanted it to be dealt as per law, ANI reported.
Assistant public prosecutor Atul Srivastava stated that conditions should be imposed while granting bail to Brij Bhushan Singh, as he may influence witnesses.
On the other hand, advocate Harsh Vohra, representing the complainant, said that if the court was inclined to grant bail, strict conditions can be imposed.
Earlier this week, the court had granted Singh and his co-accused Vinod Tomar interim bail of two days during the pendency of the regular bail pleas. The judge noted that he was not arrested during the investigation and appeared before it "without any coercive process".
Brij Bhushan is going to be replaced soon after the next WFI elections.
Singh has been accused of sexual harassment by several women wrestlers. Amid massive protests by wrestlers, Singh has been charged under Sections 354, 354A, and 354D of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). These sections pertain to assault or criminal force against women with the intention to outrage their modesty, making sexually coloured remarks, and stalking, respectively.
Additionally, Singh was initially booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. However, Delhi police on June 15 submitted a report seeking cancellation of the FIR filed with regard to the allegation of sexual harassment against Singh.
Recently, the Delhi Police filed a voluminous charge sheet of around 1,599 pages in the case.