Haryana Sports Minister Sandeep Singh has been accused of sexual harassment and outraging the modesty of a junior athletics coach.
The coach, who has not been identified, filed a complaint against Sports Minister on Friday, alleging that he contacted her on Instagram and insisted on meeting her. The coach claims that when she finally agreed to meet with Singh, he engaged in sexual misconduct.
A case has been registered against Sports Minister Singh under several sections of the Indian Penal Code, including sexual harassment and assault. Singh, who is also an Olympian and was the former captain of the Indian national hockey team, has denied the allegations and called for a thorough investigation. In a statement, Singh said, “There is an attempt to spoil my image. I hope there will be a thorough investigation into the false allegations leveled against me. I hand over the responsibility of the Sports department to the Chief Minister until the report of the investigation comes out.“
Haryana Sports Minister to be immediately dismissed
The Haryana government has also established a Special Investigation Team to investigate the accusations against Singh. The opposition Indian National Lok Dal party and Senior Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda have both called for Singh to be immediately dismissed and for a thorough, impartial investigation into the matter.
The coach spoke about her experience with Singh. She said that Singh had first seen her at a gym and then contacted her on Instagram, repeatedly insisting that they meet up. The coach said, “He messaged me on Instagram and said my national games certificate is pending and wanted to meet in this regard.” She added that when she finally agreed to meet with Singh at his residence-cum-camp office, he engaged in sexual misconduct.
Sandeep Singh is a sitting BJP MLA from Pehowa in Kurukshetra and rose to fame after making a miraculous recovery from a gunshot wound that left him paralyzed for a year. A biographical film about Singh’s life, titled ‘Soorma’, was released in 2018 and featured popular Punjabi singer and actor Diljit Dosanjh as Singh. He has also served as a judge on the reality TV show MTV Roadies.
