Olympian Vinesh Phogat, who recently entered the political arena, is gearing to contest the Haryana assembly polls on a Congress ticket from Julana. The Congress party has recorded defeat on the Jat-dominated seat in the last three assembly elections and has won here only four times since 1967.     

The JJP won the seat in the 2019 elections, while the INLD secured it in the 2009 and 2014 polls. Local Dalit leader Madanlal Dhanak, who left the JJP and joined the Congress, told Newslaundry that there is a wind of change. Several other locals said that many believe Phogat was “deliberately defeated” in the Paris Olympics, while the wrestler has alleged that the central government did not provide her with enough aid.   

The wrestler-turned-politician also spoke to Newslaundry about the impact of her political venture on the WFI controversy, Haryana politics, and her vision for Julana. Her rallies are thronged by women, where she invokes the wrestlers’ protest, adversities faced by women athletes, and the allegations against former WFI chief and BJP leader Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. 

Meanwhile, besides Phogat, four other Jat leaders are in fray in Julana – INLD’s Surender lather, JJP’s Amarjeet Dhanda, and AAP’s Kavita Dalal. The BJP has fielded OBC candidate Captain Yogesh Bairagi. Amid this, Phogat is being hailed as a leader of no particular caste but 36 communities. Will she be able to make a dent in the Haryana politics?

Watch.