Being pressured to withdraw complaint against Haryana minister Sandeep Singh: Woman coach
Chandigarh (PTI): A junior athletic coach, who levelled sexual harassment allegations against Haryana minister Sandeep Singh, on Thursday alleged she is being "pressured" to withdraw her complaint.
"I am being pressured to withdraw the complaint. I am a victim, but I am treated worse than even an accused. Real accused continues to be a minister in the government.
"Right from day one, this government is trying to save Sandeep Singh. But I have taken a stand and I will fight for my rights," the woman coach told reporters here.
When asked who was putting pressure on her to withdraw the complaint, she reiterated that the media knows everything.
The coach was recently suspended from services over alleged violation of service conduct rules.
The suspension orders were issued by Haryana's sports department director Yashendra Singh on August 11. The reasons for the suspension have though not been mentioned.
However, official sources said that her services had been placed under suspension over alleged indiscipline and violation of the service conduct rules.
The coach reiterated that she was contemplating to move the court against her "unjustified" suspension.
She said that eight months ago, she had lodged a complaint against the Haryana minister. An FIR was lodged against him by Chandigarh police and an SIT was set up, she said.
"But no charge sheet has been filed so far by the Chandigarh police and it seems they too are under pressure," she alleged.
Sandeep Singh has refused consent for a polygraph test in the sexual harassment case, the woman coach alleged, adding despite being an accused, Sandeep Singh was allowed to unfurl the national flag on the Republic Day and Independence Day.
To a question, she said she has full faith in the judicial system.
Sandeep Singh, who is presently the Minister of State, Printing and Stationery, is a first-time MLA and former India hockey captain.
He was booked under sections 354 (assault or use of criminal force against a woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 354A (sexual harassment), 354B (assault or criminal force with intent to disrobe), 342 (wrongful confinement) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code on the woman coach's complaint last year.
Police had later set up a Special Investigation Team to conduct a probe into the case.
Singh, who gave up the sports portfolio after being booked in connection with the case, had then said that he took the step on moral grounds. He had claimed that the charges levelled against him by the woman coach were baseless.
The sports portfolio is presently with the chief minister.
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Rupee hits record low of 96.14/USD, settles at fresh closing low of 95.86/USD
Mumbai (PTI): The Indian rupee crashed below the 96/USD mark on Friday before closing at an all-time low of 95.86 (provisional) against the US dollar as elevated crude oil prices and inflation concerns added to the downside pressure on the rupee.
Rupee has registered over 6 per cent losses so far this year, and in the past six trading sessions, it has depreciated nearly 2 per cent as Iran war risk escalation pushed crude oil prices higher. The dollar index moved northwards after strong US retail sales and stable labour market data reduced expectations of aggressive Federal Reserve rate cuts.
Forex traders said global uncertainties, relatively high valuations, and the lack of AI-led investment opportunities have weighed on capital flows.
Moreover, weak net FDI inflows are likely to exert pressure on the balance of payments, while rising crude oil prices stoke inflation worries.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 95.86, then slumped to a record low of 96.14 in intraday trade, registering a fall of 50 paise from its previous close.
The USD/INR pair finally settled at 95.86 (provisional) against the US dollar, registering a fall of 22 paise from its previous close, helped by likely RBI intervention.
On Thursday, the rupee weakened to a fresh record low of 95.96 before closing with a marginal gain of 2 paise at 95.64 against the US dollar.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading at 99.15, higher by 0.34 per cent.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading up 3.14 per cent at USD 109.04 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, Sensex fell 160.73 points to settle at 75,237.99, while Nifty declined 46.10 points to 23,643.50.
Foreign Institutional Investors turned net buyers, purchasing equities worth Rs 187.46 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.
Meanwhile, the country's exports in April rose by 13.78 per cent to USD 43.56 billion despite global challenges, Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal said on Friday.
Imports grew 10 per cent year-on-year to USD 71.94 billion in April. The trade deficit during the month stood at USD 28.38 billion.
"We expect the rupee to trade with a negative bias on elevated crude oil prices and inflation concerns. Strong dollar and FII outflows may also weigh on the rupee. However, any intervention by the RBI and hiking of import duty on gold and silver may support the rupee at lower levels. USD-INR spot price is expected to trade in a range of 95.60 to 96.20," said Anuj Choudhary, Research analyst at Mirae Asset ShareKhan.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart Donald Trump on Friday hailed their talks as "historic" and "landmark", as the American leader wrapped up his three-day visit on a high note, but no deals on any contentious issues were announced.
Both Presidents, who held several rounds of talks covering a range of global issues, including the Iran war and bilateral trade frictions, concluded their discussions with a private meeting at Zhongnanhai, the well-guarded compound in Beijing where top leaders reside.
