New Delhi: Accused of rape under the stringent POCSO act, Arjuna award-winning Indian hockey player Varun Kumar has withdrawn from the FIH Pro League in Bhubaneswar to explore his legal options against the allegation, which he described as a “calculated attempt to extort money” from him.
The 28-year-old has been granted “urgent leave” from national duty by Hockey India after he stated that the incident has taken a toll on his “physical and mental health”.
Varun has been booked by the Bengaluru Police after a woman accused the defender of sexually abusing her multiple times when she was a minor.
The 22-year-old, in her complaint filed on Monday, said that she came in contact with Varun in 2018 through Instagram, and the player raped her on multiple occasions promising her of marriage when she was 17.
According the woman, he took her to a hotel in Bengaluru’s Jayanagar in July 2019 and made physical relations with her despite being aware that she was a minor and her resistance.