Shooting coach accused of sexual assault had failed dope test, owned cafes and fitness club

An international medallist, a shooter marred by a doping controversy and an entrepreneur with multiple academies, Ankush Bhardwaj, 35, was once seen as a bright young prospect in Indian shooting. While he never realised his potential, Bhardwaj turned to coaching and was a member of India’s coaching staff. Faridabad police, are now investigating an FIR where a minor shooter has accused him of sexual harassment.

A resident of Mohali, Bhardwaj has been booked under Section 6 of POCSO Act (aggravated sexual assault) and Section 351(2) of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita (criminal intimidation). The National Rifle Association of India, too, has suspended the athlete-turned-coach and will issue him a show-cause notice, the federation’s secretary Rajiv Bhatia said.

A son of teacher parents, Bhardwaj came from a modest family in Ambala and began shooting in 2005 at a National Cadet Corps camp. He then moved to Dehradun, where he trained under Subhash Rana, the brother of one of India’s pistol greats, Jaspal Rana.

Married to two-time World Championship silver medallist and Olympian shooter Anjum Moudgil, Bhardwaj burst onto the shooting scene in 2008 as an 18-year-old after winning the gold medal in the 50m pistol event at the Commonwealth Youth Games in Pune. He was on course to be picked for the 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games. The Youth Games medal added to his reputation, along with a series of impressive domestic performances.

However, a couple of months before the Games, he was suspended after failing a dope test. Bhardwaj had tested positive for consuming beta blockers – deemed performance-enhancing as they help shooters steady their arm and minimise trembling – during a junior international competition held at Suhl, Germany. Bhardwaj, in his defence, said he had taken medicine for a headache.

Bhardwaj returned to shooting two years later and competed in national and international competitions, winning a gold medal at the International Shooting Cup in Hannover, Germany, in 2017.

He had turned to coaching before that. In 2016, Bhardwaj launched the Shooters Cafe in Mohali to mentor young shooters. Later, he established the Salvo Shooters Arena in Mohali, and last year, along with his wife, Moudgil, Bhardwaj started the Archon Fitness Club in Mohali. The club comprised a shooting range, a rehabilitation and wellness studio, a fitness arena, a pickleball court, a bouldering wall and other fitness activities.

“Our focus is providing athletes a holistic approach to their training as well as fitness, and hence we have come out with this venture. Athletes often struggle with the right kind of training as well as the support required in the rehabilitation process, apart from other leisure activities, to keep their minds calm. Through this endeavour, we aim to fulfil that gap and provide a world-class training facility to the athletes in the region,” Bhardwaj had told The Indian Express.

Police sources said that, as per the complainant’s statement, as recorded in the FIR, the alleged incident occurred on December 16, after she participated in a national competition at the Dr Karni Singh Shooting Range in Tughlakabad, Delhi. Bhardwaj has been accused of forcibly touching her inappropriately, pressing her down on the bed of a hotel room near the shooting range where he was staying, and committing sexual assault despite her resistance.

The sources added that the minor, aged 16, had been training under the accused since August 2025.