'BJP is Still Shielding Brij Bhushan': In Julana, On the Road With Vinesh Phogat

Haryana Polls | Congress has pinned its hopes on Vinesh Phogat in Julana, a seat it hasn't won in 15 years.

The Quint caught up with Vinesh Phogat for an interview as she gears up to contest from Julana in the upcoming Haryana Assembly elections. 

(Photo: The Quint/Aroop Mishra)

At 9 am on Sunday, 22 September — 13 days before the state of Haryana goes to vote — the Congress party office in Jind's Julana Assembly constituency was packed with hookah-smoking men in white kurtas paired with starched white and pink turbans. They were waiting for their 'halke ki bahu' — Vinesh Phogat — to make an appearance before they went about their day's work.

Phogat, a world-renowned wrestler is the wife of Somvir Rathee, also a wrestler, who hails from Julana's Garwali Kheda village, which, these men told The Quint, makes her the daughter-in-law of the entire constituency.

That morning the wrestler-turned-politician was running late for her door-to-door campaign which starts at 9 am sharp from the party office everyday. Tea, served with boondi ke laddoo, kept the supporters busy.

"Pehelwan (Vinesh) has been campaigning non-stop for over 20 days...morning to night. She was taken ill earlier today. She'd be here soon," said Vikas, a wedding photographer who had been trailing Phogat's campaign since day one.

Seeing a handful of reporters get restless, Vikas continued, "We've seen her in Delhi at the protest. Even their tear gas shells and those iron nails couldn't keep her down. What will a minor illness do?"

Vikas and several other Phogat supporters in Julana are convinced that she'd emerge victorious with a margin of about '40,000-50,000 votes'.

But up against candidates from Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Dushyant Chautala's JJP and Azad Samaj Party (ASP) alliance, INLD and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) alliance, and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Phogat is in tough ride in the constituency where the Congress has not won any election in 15 years.

The Quint caught up with her for an interview.

Here are some excerpts:

After over 20 days of campaigning, what do you find more difficult — wrestling or politics?

Frankly, everything is difficult in the beginning. But I'm confident that soon there will be a time when we'll make everything look easy with our hard work and the love of our people. Even wrestling is not easy. If that was the case, everybody would've been a wrestler today. And especially for women, no field is easy. But we have faith in our hard work and in God...we'll cross all hurdles and emerge victorious.

Phogat's rather dramatic plunge into politics came on 7 September, when she, along with fellow Olympian wrestler Bajrang Punia, joined the Congress party in Delhi.

At a press conference, she questioned the BJP over the treatment of wrestlers during their protest against ex-Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Singh. "When we were being dragged on the roads, every party except the BJP was with us. Other parties were able to understand our pain and our tears," Phogat had said.

Her move to join the party came weeks after she was disqualified from the 2024 Paris Olympics after failing the weigh-in ahead of her final match.

Your protest in Delhi, against former WFI Chief and BJP leader Brij Bhushan Singh started from a point where you did not associate with any political party, even actively asking some of them to stay out. Today, you are a Congress party candidate from this constituency. What/who convinced you to join politics?

We tried fighting on the streets. People from all walks of life joined our protest. But we didn't get justice. We even went to the courts but you know how that works...people have to wait for years for closure. I even went to the Olympics to make a point. I don't want our struggle to ensure the safety of women to end halfway through. We want it to reach a conclusive end where we can ensure a safe workplace environment for women in all fields. We want to make sure that years from now when somebody asks about our struggle, we are able to show them the output. Any movement ending midway is not a good sign. It impacts the morale of the society as a whole. We want the spirits of the people to be high. Especially of the women who were inspired by us and had the courage to speak out against harassment.

Speaking about your protests...do you believe BJP is shielding Brij Bhushan Singh?

Of course! There is no doubt that the BJP is shielding him. It is for this reason that his son was given a ticket and no action has been taken against him by the party. But who will save him from God? The truth will come out. We will continue our fight.

Tell about Paris Olympics. What was your state of mind? Have you been able to overcome that disqualification? 

It's not easy for any athlete. Even when we lose in the nationals, it hurts. That was still the Olympics' stage. Honestly, I haven't fully recovered. It takes time for every player to recover from such setbacks. It might not happen even in a lifetime. But I want to turn a new leaf and dedicate the next chapter of my life to other people and the society. People have given me a lot of love and respect as a player. It is my time to give back to the society.

Do you have a message for the people of Julana? If you win, what will your plan of action be?

There is a long list. Julana currently lacks basic amenities — from roads to water to everyday essentials. There is no employment, no stadiums for athletes, if there is a stadium there are no coaches. There are several such issues. I want the voters to have faith in me. I will go above and beyond my capacity for the development of this constituency.