Haryana sports minister booked for sexual harassment

After receiving a complaint by a female junior athletics coach of Haryana, the Chandigarh police have booked Haryana sports minister Sandeep Singh for sexually harassing her.

Police said a case under Sections 354 (Assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 354A (sexual harassment), 354B (Assault or use of criminal force to woman with intent to disrobe), 342 (wrongful confinement) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) was registered at the Sector 26 police station on Saturday.

The woman coach on Thursday alleged that Singh, a former hockey captain and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA from Pehowa in Kurukshetra, indulged in sexual misconduct when she visited his official residence in Chandigarh.

The woman visited the Chandigarh police headquarters on Friday and met senior superintendent of police (SSP) Manisha Choudhary and superintendent of police (SP, city) Shruti Arora.

The minister, however, dismissed the charge as baseless and called for an independent probe.

“I have full faith in the Chandigarh police and was assured a fair inquiry,” said the woman, who was recruited as junior coach in September. The woman, who took part in the Rio Olympics, was recruited under the government’s outstanding sports person scheme.