Olympic medallist Sakshi Malik on Saturday said the minor wrestler among those who had accused outgoing Wrestling Federation of India chief and BJP parliamentarian Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh of sexual harassment had changed her statement because “her family was threatened”.

On Thursday, Delhi police had submitted a chargesheet before a trial court in the sexual harassment case against Singh by six adult women wrestlers but filed a closure report on the complaint from the minor wrestler, recommending the cancellation of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (Pocso) case against the MP.

In a video message, having the hashtag "The Truth", Malik and her husband Satyawart Kadian, also a wrestler, on Saturday sought to clarify the reason behind the initial delay in filing the complaints against Singh.

“The reason we were silent for so many days was because we lacked unity initially. Another reason you can understand that the minor wrestler gave her statement (before the magistrate) and after several days, she changed her statement because her family was threatened,” Malik said.

“How could we have raised our voices individually? Those who come to wrestling are from very poor backgrounds. They don’t have enough courage to raise their voice against such a powerful man. People would have realised by now what India’s top wrestlers had to go through even after raising their voices."

Earlier, Malik, who has with other top wrestlers been demanding the immediate arrest of Singh, had alleged an atmosphere of fear and intimidation and said there was “huge pressure” on the wrestlers to “compromise”.

The minor’s statement was first recorded before a magistrate in the first week of May, in which she alleged sexual assault by Singh. Her father recently withdrew the complaint saying it was false and had been filed in anger at Singh for discriminating against his daughter. Later, a newspaper quoted the father as saying he had been threatened by people whose names he could not reveal and his family was “living in intense fear”.

The chargesheet relates to an FIR filed against Singh by six adult women wrestlers. It invokes the Indian Penal Code’s sections 354 (assault or criminal force on women with intent to outrage her modesty), 354A (sexual harassment) and 354D (stalking).

Singh has been accused of demanding “sexual favours” in lieu of professional assistance. The FIRs cite at least 15 instances of sexual harassment and alleged instances of intimidation including stalking.

In the video message, Kadian said: “You know we have been protesting against WFI chief Brij Bhushan Singh as he sexually harassed women wrestlers. Over the past few days, we have noticed that a counter-narrative is being made against us and rumours are being spread. Our objective behind making this video is to tell you the truth.”

He rubbished the allegations that the Congress was behind the protest and said the permission for the protest at Jantar Mantar was taken from police by two BJP leaders.

“Ninety per cent people related to wrestling, including wrestlers and coaches, knew about the inappropriate behaviour women wrestlers were being subjected to for the last 10-12 years. Whenever anyone tried to raise their voice, word would reach the WFI president (Singh) and they started facing difficulties in their careers,” Kadian said.

“We have said again and again that our fight is not against the government but against the misdeeds of the WFI president.”

Kadian said the people had witnessed how the country’s top women wrestlers were roughed up and dragged by Delhi police on May 28, with the cops later dismantling the protest venue. “The police treated us with such barbarity and arrested us even though we had not broken any law or violated the Constitution.”

He said the call for a Mahila Panchayat outside Parliament on May 28 was given by “our khap elders”.

“Later, we came to know that the new Parliament building was being inaugurated on the same day," he said.

"We were broken and aggrieved after the brutality meted out to us on May 28. We won medals for the country but our honour was trampled on the road.”