Haryana Assembly polls 2024: Just a few days ahead of the Haryana Assembly elections, Indian grapplers Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia entered political arena and joined the Congress party in Delhi on Friday. Earlier, they met party national president Mallikarjun Kharge.
Addressing the media, Vinesh Phogat said that the fight “hasn’t ended yet”. She said, “The fight is continuing, it hasn’t ended yet. It’s in Court. We will win that fight as well… With the new platform that we are getting today, we will work for the service of the nation. The way we played our game with heart, we will give our best to work for our people. I want to tell my sisters, that I am with them. If there will be no one for you, I will be there, Congress party will be there. I have felt this, and I can assure you that we will be there for sure.”
After joining Congress, Bajrang Punia said, “…What BJP IT Cell is saying today that we just wanted to do politics…We had written to all women BJP MPs to stand with us but they still didn’t come. We are paying to raise the voices of women but now we know that BJP stands with atrocities against women, and all other parties stand with us. We will work hard to strengthen the Congress party and the nation…The day Vinesh qualified for finals the country was happy but the next day everyone was sad. At that time, one IT Cell was celebrating…”
This development comes just two days after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi met the wrestlers.
Gandhi and the wrestlers’ meeting was met with various opposition ministers spoke out. BJP MP and Union Minister Manohar Lal Khattar also lashed out and said, “I think our athletes got trapped in a political maze during the protests. What started back then is reaching its climax now. The wrestlers’ protests were politically motivated. These people (wrestlers) are seeking a ticket from the Congress. This means that there is a nexus. If it wasn’t clear then, it is absolutely clear now.”
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Bajrang Punia and Vinesh Phogat were amongst the wrestlers who protested against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, former BJP MP and then chief of Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), who they accused of harassing several young junior wrestlers.
‘Haryana – a state of youth’
On being asked about Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia joining Congress, party spokesperson Alok Sharma said, “The party will get a huge boost from them joining the party…Sportspersons should come forward as Haryana is a state of youth…”
This comes amid conversations between the AAP and Congress over forming an alliance in Haryana for the Assembly polls. “The conversation between the top leadership of both parties is going on. We should have a decision soon,” a senior Congress leader said, IE reported.