Olympic medallist Yogeshwar Dutt took a jibe at former wrestler-turned-politician Vinesh Phogat for “seeking benefits” from the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Haryana government after fiercely opposing the BJP during the wrestler’s protests. Notably, the Nayab Singh Saini-led Haryana government is set to extend benefits to Vinesh, equivalent to an Olympics silver medallist. “Time is very powerful. Those who used to talk of throwing prize money at the government’s face are now begging for money in the Vidhan Sabha,” Yogeshwar stated in a post on X.
— Yogeshwar Dutt (@DuttYogi) March 30, 2025
Vinesh was among the top wrestlers who led the protest against former Wrestling Federation of India chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh over accusations of sexual harassment.
During the peak of the protest, Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik and Bajrang Punia threatened to throw away their medals into the river.
Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini, last week, confirmed that the former wrestler is entitled to a cash reward, a Group-A job or benefits under Haryana Shehri Vikas Pradhikaran, Urban Development Authority.
“I have said this earlier also that Vinesh is the daughter of Haryana, and we will not let her honour be diminished,” he said.
“As per the silver medal category, athletes are entitled to three types of benefits: a cash reward, a Group A job, or benefits under HSVP (Haryana Shehri Vikas Pradhikaran, Urban Development Authority). The decision has been taken in the cabinet meeting over this…We have left this decision to Vinesh to choose which of the three benefits she wants to avail,” CM Saini added.
Vinesh switched to politics after announcing her retirement from wrestling a short while after she was disqualified from the Paris Olympic Games.
In her 50-kg category weigh-in, she was found overweight by about 100 gm before the final. Vinesh was set to play for the gold medal in the final against the United States’ Sarah Ann Hildebrandt.
After joining the Congress party last year, Vinesh contested the Haryana assembly elections and is currently serving as an MLA from Julana.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Topics mentioned in this article
