Vinesh Phogat should apologize to nation instead of blaming IOA: Olympian Yogeshwar Dutt slams Congress poll candidate

Speaking at the Panchayat AajTak Haryana 2024 event, freestyle wrestler Yogeshwar Dutta, who won a bronze in the 2012 Olympics, said, as quoted in India Today, that he was surprised when Vinesh started spreading conspiracy theories about her Olympic disqualification and even going as far as blaming Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the episode.

"She was disqualified from the Olympic Games, she should have apologised in front of the entire nation, saying that she made mistakes. But instead, she termed it a conspiracy, even blaming the Prime Minister of the country. Everyone knows that the disqualification was the right call. They disqualify athletes even if the weight is more by a gram," Yogeshwar said during an interaction on AajTak.

In a heartbreak for India, wrestler Vinesh Phogat was disqualified from Olympics 2024 in August after she was found slightly overweight, missing out on a sure chance to grab either gold or silver medal.

Vinesh, who was competing in the 50 kg freestyle wrestling category, crossed the weight limit by 100 gm.

After returning to India, Vinesh Phogat joined the Congress party and was given a ticket by the party to contest Haryana polls from Julana.

She was seen at the forefront of a protest against BJP leader and former Wrestling Federation of India president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh over sexual harassment charges.

"She has her own preferences but the country should know the truth. Whatever happened in the country over the last one year, be it her disqualification from the Olympic Games or the protest. When the new parliament was to be inaugurated, the country's image was painted in an incorrect manner," Yogeshwar Dutt, who joined Bharatiya Janata Party in September 2019, said, according to an NDTV report.

Yogeshwar's remarks followed days after Vinesh accused the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and its president, PT Usha for not providing adequate legal support during her appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) for a joint silver medal. 

Haryana will go to polls in a single phase on October 5.