Sonali Phogat Death: Brother Alleges Pre-Planned Murder, Demands CBI Probe

The BJP leader's kin refused to believe that she died of a heart attack and demanded a CBI probe into her death.

Sonali Phogat.

(Photo Courtesy: Facebook)

A day after the death of Sonali Phogat in Goa reportedly due to a heart attack, her family lodged a complaint at the Anjuna police station on Wednesday, 24 August, alleging foul play in her death.

The complaint was registered after the family claimed that Phogat had called to say something "fishy was going on" hours before she died. Meanwhile, Anjuna Police has registered a case of unnatural death, reported news agency PTI.

Expressing concern over the post-mortem, Late Sonali Phogat's brother, Rinku said, "We are not satisfied with the postmortem done here in Goa. We want that it should be done again at AIIMS, Delhi."

"I have submitted a written complaint in Anjuna Police Station, Goa. This was a pre-planned murder. We have doubts about two people including her personal assistant. I demand a CBI investigation into her death," he added.

Phogat had reportedly gone to Goa for a shoot for two days. The 41-year-old actor-politician had complained of uneasiness to her staff on Monday, after which she was taken to St Anthony Hospital at Anjuna in North Goa district, where she was declared brought dead.

What the Brother's Complaint Said

In his complaint to Anjuna Police, Rinku alleged that after being appointed as Sonali's PA, Sudhir Sangwan "fired her cook and househelp" and took over all housework.

He further alleged that three months ago Sudhir fed her kheer after which her "hands and legs started trembling and stopped working."

He also alleged that Sonali thought Sudhir was responsible for the robbery in her house in 2021.

The complaint added that Sonali had revealed all this to her brother-in-law Aman Puniya a day before her death. According to the complaint, she was going to report this to Hisar Police the next day.

As per the complaint, she had also told him, "Three years ago, Sudhir had added sedative/drugs to my food and misbehaved with me multiple times at my house in Sant Nagar, Hisar. He also made videos of the act and blackmailed me by threatening to make them viral."

Sudhir had also allegedly taken away both her phones, property papers, ATM card, and house keys.

'She Had No Medical Problems'

However, her kin claims that she didn't have any medical issues and it was not possible for her to have died of a heart attack.

"My sister cannot have a heart attack. She was very fit. We demand a proper investigation by the CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation). My family is not ready to accept that she died of a heart attack. She had no such medical problem," said Rupesh, the sister of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and TikTok star.

"I received a call from her the evening before her death. She said she wanted to talk over WhatsApp and that something fishy is going on. Later, she cut the call and then didn't pick up," Rupesh was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

Deputy Superintendent of Police (Mapusa) Jivba Dalvi, however, said that Phogat's death was due to a heart attack. "Prime facie, the cause of death is established as a heart attack but further medical examination is on. We will form a panel of doctors," he said.

As per officials, the post-mortem of Phogat's mortal remains will be conducted at the Goa Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) on Wednesday.

'Detailed Probe Being Conducted': Goa CM Pramod Sawant

Meanwhile, Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Wednesday said the state police were conducting a detailed investigation into Phogat's death.

Considering the opinion of doctors and Goa Director General of Police Jaspal Singh, it preliminary looks like she died due to a heart attack, Sawant told reporters.

He added that he was following up on the matter with Director General of Police Jaspal Singh.

"The Goa Police are conducting a detailed investigation into the case," he said.

Singh had earlier said there was no foul play in the case, even as Phogat's family questioned the circumstances of her death and Opposition parties in Haryana demanded a CBI probe.

There are no external injury marks on the body, the DGP had said, adding that the post-mortem report would reveal the exact cause of the death.

(With inputs from PTI and ANI.)