National shooting coach Ankush Bharadwaj has been booked by the Haryana Police for allegedly sexually assaulting a 17-year-old national-level female shooter at a hotel in Faridabad.

The case was registered following a detailed complaint submitted by the athlete’s family.

POCSO case

An FIR was lodged on Tuesday (January 6), and the police have initiated an investigation, which includes recording witness statements and obtaining CCTV footage from the hotel.

According to the FIR, the alleged incident occurred during a national-level shooting competition held at the Dr Karni Singh Shooting Range in New Delhi.

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The complaint alleged that Bharadwaj assaulted the minor in a hotel room in Faridabad, after allegedly coercing her to go to his room to assess her performance.

A case has been registered against him at the Women’s Police Station, NIT Faridabad, under Section 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and Section 351(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Coach suspended

“Given the seriousness of the allegations, we have directed the hotel management to immediately provide all CCTV footage from the day of the incident to corroborate the minor’s complaint,” said Yashpal Yadav, public relations officer of the Faridabad Police.

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Bharadwaj is among the 13 national pistol coaches appointed by the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI). He has since been suspended following the allegations.

“We came to know of the matter through media reports. Until the inquiry is completed, coach Ankush has been suspended from all duties and will not be assigned any new responsibilities,” NRAI secretary general Pawan Kumar Singh said.

Family, career threatened

The FIR further stated that the athlete was initially asked to meet the coach in the hotel lobby, but was later allegedly coerced into going to his room on the pretext of a performance review.

It also claimed that the coach threatened to destroy her career and harm her family if she disclosed the incident.

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The athlete reportedly left the hotel in a distressed state and later informed her family, who subsequently filed a formal complaint with the police.

According to reports, the athlete has also alleged that another female shooter had experienced similar behaviour from the same coach.