POCSO Act being misused, we'll force govt to change law: Brij Bhushan ahead of Ayodhya rally
Bahraich (UP) (PTI): Wrestling Federation of India president and BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, who faces a case under the POCSO Act, on Thursday said the law is being "misused" and under the leadership of seers, "we will force the government to change" it.
Singh was speaking to reporters at a meeting here regarding preparations for a rally of seers called by him in Ayodhya on June 5. He has claimed 11 lakh seers will take part in the rally.
Top wrestlers of the country, including Vinesh Phogat and Olympic medallists Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik, have been staging a sit-in at Jantar Mantar in Delhi since April 23, demanding Singh's arrest for allegedly sexually harassing seven women grapplers, including a minor.
The Delhi Police has filed two FIRs against the WFI president. While the first FIR relates to allegations by the minor wrestler and has been registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, the second is related to outraging modesty.
Singh alleged the POCSO Act is being "misused on a large scale".
"This law is being misused against children, the elderly and seers. Even officials are not immune to its misuse," the Kaiserganj MP claimed.
"Under the leadership of seers, we will force the government to change the (POCSO) law," he said.
The law was brought by the Congress government without examining its various aspects, he added.
Singh also reiterated that all the allegations against him are false.
The Sports Ministry has cancelled all activities of the wrestling federation till the investigation into the allegations of the wrestlers is completed.
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Surat LS candidate Nilesh Kumbhani whose nomination form was rejected suspended from Congress
Ahmedabad, Apr 25: The Gujarat Congress on Friday suspended from the party for six years its Surat Lok Sabha candidate Nilesh Kumbhani, whose nomination form was rejected over discrepancies leading to the BJP's Mukesh Dalal getting elected unopposed.
A statement from the Congress said the party's disciplinary committee decided to suspend Kumbhani after thorough discussion, adding it had come to the conclusion that the nomination form was rejected due to gross negligence on his part or "in connivance with the BJP".
"To be fair to you we have given time to you to explain your case but instead of coming before the party disciplinary committee you have gone incommunicado. After your form was rejected by the authorities, BJP went ahead and got form of other eight candidates withdrawn. This has deprived people of Surat their voting rights," the Congress disciplinary committee headed by Balu Patel said.
"People of Surat and party workers have become very angry due to your action and are expressing their anger in different ways. The Congress party has decided to suspend you for six years from the party," the press note said.
Kumbhani's nomination form was rejected on April 21 after his three proposers submitted affidavits to the district returning officer claiming the signatures on the document was not theirs.
The nomination form of Suresh Padsala, the Congress' substitute candidate from Surat, was also invalidated on the same grounds.
In his order, Returning Officer Sourabh Pardhi said the three nomination forms submitted by Kumbhani and Padsala were rejected after prima facie discrepancy was found in the signatures of the proposers and they did not appear to be genuine.
Kumbhani, a former corporator from Surat, had unsuccessfully fought the 2022 Assembly polls from Kamrej there.
The Bharatiya Janata Party's Mukesh Dalal was elected unopposed from Surat Lok Sabha constituency on April 22 after all other nominees, including one from BSP, withdrew from the fray one by one on the last day of withdrawing papers.
