A junior sports coach who accused Haryana minister Sandeep Singh of sexual harassment has been fired for allegedly breaking conduct guidelines.

Director of Haryana’s sports department Yashendra Singh issued the suspension orders on August 11. However, no explanation for the suspension was provided.

Her services have been suspended due to alleged indiscipline and a violation of service behavior standards, according to official sources.

What does the order say?

The order stated that the junior athletic coach’s “services are immediately and without cause suspended.”

The order said, “She will be entitled to subsistence allowance during the suspension period as admissible under Rule 83 of Haryana Civil Services (General) Rules, 2016.”

The woman coach, meantime, said that she had been the target of pressure for the previous few months and declared she would pursue legal action even if her services were taken back. She stated that she is thinking about asking the court to overturn her “unjustified” suspension.

What does the coach say?

“They have suspended me, but they haven’t given me any explanation. I have been pressurised for many months and this and this is yet another way to put pressure on me by the government,” the coach said.

The instructor claimed that she has shown “great discipline and regularity” in her work.

“However, I am not anyone’s servant. I won’t even take a single step back. I’ll fight for my rights even if they decide to cancel my services,” she added.

The coach added that “if anyone is placed under suspension, under the rules he or she is given a warning” but it did not happen in her case.

“On Friday (at the site of her posting), I was made to wait and was not allowed to put my name in the attendance book. And I didn’t get a call from a sports division official telling me I was suspended,” she rued. On Monday night, they brought the letter of suspension to my house, she said.

“I take part in sports. What could be more excruciating for a sportsperson than a four-month suspension from the (athletic) fields? My fundamental rights have been violated by the government and the department of sports. I can, however, wage this struggle by myself. The truth always prevails,” she said.

Who is Sandeep Singh?

The man in contention here is Sandeep Singh, former India hockey captain. He is the current Haryana minister of state for printing and stationery. He is a first time MLA and was the sports minister before the junior woman coach alleged that Singh invited her to his official residence in Chandigarh under the pretense of document verification, when he reportedly “touched her inappropriately and tried to kiss her.” An FIR was filed against Sandeep Singh in January 2023. The sports portfolio is presently with the chief minister.

In response to the woman coach’s complaint from the previous year, he was arrested under sections 354 (assault or use of criminal force against a woman with the intent to outrage her modesty), 354 A (sexual harassment), 354 B (forcing her to be naked), 342 (wrongful confinement), and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Later, police created a Special Investigation Team to look into the issue.