Brij Bhushan Singh gets grand welcome in Gonda with ‘Sher aaya’ chants, flower petals after acquittal in wrestlers' case

Former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief and former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Lok Sabha MP from Gonda's Kaisarganj seat, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh received a massive welcome on Thursday as he returned to his home district Gonda for the first time after being acquitted in the sexual harassment case filed by wrestlers.

Singh reached Ayodhya's international airport in a chartered aircraft, where supporters greeted him with drums, music and chants, according to PTI.

Thousands of supporters gathered along the route from the airport, with flower petals showered on his convoy using excavators. As hundreds of vehicles followed his convoy, supporters raised slogans of "Sher Aaya" (the lion has arrived) and fireworks were also set off during the welcome.

In neighbouring Ayodhya, Singh travelled in an open jeep to the Hanumangarhi temple, where he offered prayers from outside the shrine and sought blessings from seers.

During the procession, his elder son and Gonda Sadar MLA Prateek Bhushan Singh stood through the vehicle's sunroof, waved a mace and said "truth has prevailed".

After his visit to Hanumangarhi, Singh headed to the Nandini Nagar Sports Stadium, where a large rally titled "Satyamev Jayate" was organised.

Before arriving at the venue, he also offered special prayers at the Nandini Gaumata temple. Extensive arrangements, including a community feast, were made for the event. Around 40 quintals of laddoos were prepared, while more than 500 batuks from Ayodhya were invited to welcome Singh.

“Upon reaching Hanumangarhi Temple (Ayodhya Dham), we had darshan and performed worship of Lord Bajrangbali Maharaj and received His divine blessings..! Jai Bajrang Bali,” Singh said on X.

‘Had I bowed down in this case, the matter would have ended’

Singh described the sexual harassment allegations made against him by six women wrestlers as politically driven, claiming that the controversy was limited to accusations of "good touch" and "bad touch" and did not involve anything beyond that.

Speaking at the "Satyamev Jayate" felicitation programme at Nandini Nagar College in Gonda after his acquittal by a Delhi court, the 69-year-old said, "I did not pull anyone's sari. There may have been physical contact while putting medals around the wrestlers' necks, which created a storm. The allegations against me were politically motivated."

He said he could have brought the matter to an end by giving in to pressure but decided against doing so.

"Had I bowed down in this case, the matter would have ended, but my character would have been assassinated," Singh said.

Claiming that the protest against him was unlike any other, Singh said no sexual harassment-related movement anywhere in the world had reached such a scale.

"Even there was no such movement against US President Donald Trump or against any person accused of rape anywhere in the world," he said.

Singh's acquittal

A Delhi court at Rouse Avenue on Monday acquitted Singh and co-accused Vinod Tomar in the sexual harassment case filed by women wrestlers.

The allegations against Singh emerged in April-May 2023, after women wrestlers staged a protest at Delhi's Jantar Mantar, accusing the then WFI chief of sexually harassing athletes. World Championships medallist Vinesh Phogat, along with wrestlers Sakshi Malik and Bajrang Punia, led the 36-day protest that drew widespread attention.