.
GURGAON: A national shooting coach, who allegedly invited a trainee to his room at a 5-star hotel in Surajkund for a “focused discussion” about her match performance and sexually assaulted her, has been charged under provisions of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act in an FIR filed by Faridabad police. Ankush Bharadwaj, the coach, has subsequently been suspended by National Rifles Association of India (NRAI). The 17-year-old shooter was in Delhi for the national championships held in Tughlaqabad shooting range on Dec 16. After one of her matches, Ankush called her over to the hotel. The shooter alleged when she was about to leave, Ankush told her he wanted to “crack her back”, a recovery technique after a match. “I immediately refused, following which he pushed me to the bed and sexually assaulted me,” she alleged. Based on her complaint, police on Tuesday registered a case at Women’s Police Station in Faridabad’s NIT under Section 6 (penetrative sexual assault) of POCSO Act and Section 351(2) (criminal intimidation) of BNS. The coach, who is from Mohali, has not been arrested yet, said inspector Maya, who is investigating the case. Police said the shooter is a first-year BBA student in a Union territory and the only child of her parents, who work in private companies in Delhi-NCR. In her complaint, she said her parents sent her for coaching under Ankush in Aug last year. She also claimed he called her for training at multiple locations, including Mohali, Patiala, Dehradun and Delhi. NRAI secretary general Pawan Singh told TOI, “After receiving a copy of the FIR, we have suspended the coach and informed our internal complaint committee.” The association, he said, has served a show cause notice to Ankush and removed his name from all assignments. Ankush was appointed as a pistol coach, along with 36 others, after the Paris Olympics in 2024. (with inputs from Tushar Dutt)
