A British woman Hockey player of Indian origin has filed a complaint with the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) against India Hockey captain Sardar Singh alleging that she was raped by Singh in a five-star hotel in Delhi in October 2014 and that he subsequently tried to kill her by trying to push her from the top floor.
The DCW has recommended registration of an FIR against Sardar Singh in the alleged sexual assault case as also demanded registration of an FIR against Punjab Police for failing to file an FIR against Singh despite the woman alleging rape and assault in January 2016. Hockey India president Narinder Batra too has been issued a notice by the DCW and an explanation has been sought regarding allegations made by the British woman against Hockey India. The 21-year-old complainant was the first British-Asian woman to represent England in hockey in 2010 as part of their junior women’s team.
The alleged victim had lodged a police complaint in February in Ludhiana. A special investigation team (SIT) was constituted to probe the sexual harassment allegations. The SIT had given a clean chit to Sardar Singh. In March, Sardar Singh, who is a DSP with Haryana Police, had denied all the accusations, describing them as “false” and “inappropriate”. The woman also informed the DCW that she got pregnant in 2015 with Singh’s child and on informing about it to Sardar, he forced her to terminate the pregnancy.
Talking to reporters, she claimed that despite providing police with all the evidence, they did not file any FIR. “I was sent from SHO to ACP, then to the DCP and well way to DGP of Punjab Police, I also met the Ludhiana Police Commissioner,” the woman claimed according to a PTI report. Ludhiana Police instead asked her to file a complaint at either Panchkula or Sirsa police station under the Haryana police. According to the woman, the two met in London during the 2012 Olympics while she was still a teenager, and were formally engaged at a ceremony in October 2014. Soon after, he began assaulting her, she alleges according to a report in The Daily Telegraph.
