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At the Haryana Assembly Elections, former Indian wrestler and Congress candidate Vinesh Phogat clinched victory over Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Yogesh Kumar by 6,015 votes. read more
 "‘Truth has won’")
Congress candidate Vinesh Phogat won the Julana seat at the Haryana Assembly Elections. PTI
Vinesh Phogat, former Indian wrestler and Congress candidate, has acknowledged that “truth has won”, after she won the Julana assembly seat during the 2024 Haryana State Assembly elections on Tuesday. As per the Election Commission’s official website, Phogat clinched victory over Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Yogesh Bairagi and former wrestler Kavita Devi (Aaam Aadmi Party) with a margin in excess of 6,000 votes.
Phogat’s first reaction after winning Julana seat
“Truth has won,” said Phogat, who was controversially disqualified from the Paris Olympics in August. BJP had surpassed the majority mark with a lead of 50 seats, whereas Congress led on 35 seats. The BJP looks set for a third term in Haryana, and this also means that the result also debunks the exit polls that had expected Congress to bounce back.
In August, Phogat, who had reached the final of the women’s 50 kg wrestling at Paris Olympics, was disqualified after being overweight by 100 grams on the day of the final. She was due to face USA’s Sarah Hildebrandt in the final. Vinesh filed an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), demanding a joint-silver medal amid disqualification, but eventually lost her appeal.
When Phogat joined Congress after Olympics heartbreak
A day after disqualification, the 30 year-old announced retirement from wrestling, and joined Congress on 6 September. She was soon named as one of the party candidates for the Haryana elections.
“I am starting a new innings. I want sportspersons don’t have to face what we had to go through,” said Phogat, who had led a wrestlers’ protest against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, the then BJP MP, over sexual harassment allegations last year.
“It is only when times are bad that one finds out who is standing with them. When we were dragged on the roads, every party other than the BJP stood with us and understood our pain and our tears,” Vinesh had said after she joined Congress.
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