Haryana’s sports minister and former Olympian Sandeep Singh is booked under the charges of sexual misconduct with a female junior coach. Haryana police have received a complaint from the coach who also held a press conference in the office of the opposition party Indian National Lok Dal. The coach had requested chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar to inquire about the matter by setting up a special investigation team. On 29th December 2022, Haryana’s Director General of Police (DGP) PK Agrawal has therefore constituted a committee to investigate this matter.
According to the female coach, Sandeep Singh first noticed her at a gymnasium and then approached her over Instagram. The minister allegedly insisted on their meeting repeatedly after that, according to the coach. On July 1, 2022, Sandeep Singh allegedly made a Snapchat call and asked her to visit his official residence in Sector 7, Chandigarh, for verification of documents.
She said, “He messaged me on Instagram and said my national games certificate is pending and wanted to meet in this regard. Unfortunately, my certificate has been misplaced by my federation and I have been taking it up with the authorities concerned.”
Eventually, the lady consented to meet with the minister, but Sandeep Singh allegedly engaged in sexual misbehavior when she arrived with some documentation. She said, “Around 6.50 pm, he called me to his office and molested me. My t-shirt was torn. I managed to push him aside and ran out of the room as the door was unlocked.”
The minister has already called for an impartial investigation and rejected the accusations as false. An FIR in this regard is registered on Friday, December 31. A police source said, “In the matter of complaint made by a lady coach of Haryana against Sports Minister Haryana, a case FIR dated 31.12.2022 under Sections 354, 354A, 354B, 342, 506 of the IPC has been registered at Police Station Sector 26, Chandigarh, and is being investigated.”
FIR registered against Haryana Sports Minister Sandeep Singh (in file pic) following a complaint by a female coach accusing him of sexual harassment. A case has been registered under sections 354, 354A, 354B, 342, and 506 IPC. Investigation underway: PRO, Chandigarh Police pic.twitter.com/9o8Dl9GIk7
— ANI (@ANI) January 1, 2023
A three-person Special Investigation Team (SIT) has also been established by the Haryana government to look into the charges made against the minister. The committee includes Ms. Mamta Singh (IPS, Additional Director General of Police, Rohtak range), Mr. Sumer Pratap Singh (IPS, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Panchkula), and Mr. Raj Kumar Kaushik (Haryana Police Services, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Panchkula). The committee is asked to inquire into the matter in depth and submit the report as early as possible.
Olympic medalist and former captain of the Indian national hockey team Sandeep Singh has been dismissing these claims, contending they were motivated. Additionally, the lady claims that Singh has harassed other female participants.
