Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat has reportedly accused Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president PT Usha of pretending to support her during a difficult time after her disqualification from the Paris Olympics 2024.
Vinesh, who was forced out of the 53kg freestyle wrestling final due to a failed weigh-in, told a YouTube channel that PT Usha visited her in the hospital but took a photo without informing her, later posting it on social media as a show of support.
“I don't know what support I got there,” Vinesh said during an interview. “PT Usha madam visited me at the hospital. One photo was clicked... Like you said, in politics, a lot happens behind closed doors. Similarly, politics happened there (in Paris) as well.”
Vinesh, visibly frustrated, explained how the situation felt like a betrayal during one of the toughest moments of her life. “You are on a hospital bed, where you don't know what's happening in life outside, you are going through one of the worst phases of your life. At that place, just to show everyone you are standing with me, aap bina bataye photo kheench rahe ho, fir social media pe daal ke bol rahe ho hum saath mein khade hain (clicked a photo without telling me and then putting it on social media to say you are standing with me).”
She added, “That’s not how you show support. What was it more than (posturing)!”
Vinesh, who recently joined the Indian National Congress, reflected on how the politics surrounding the incident has made her question her future in wrestling, saying, "For what should I continue? There is politics everywhere."
Vinesh's cousin Babita accused senior Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda of causing a rift in her family after Vinesh joined the Congress. “Bhupinder Hooda succeeded in creating a divide in the Phogat family. People will teach him a lesson. The Congress has always worked to divide and rule, breaking families,” Babita said.
She also mentioned that Vinesh should have listened to Mahavir Phogat, her father and Vinesh’s uncle. “Mahavir Phogat is her guru. She should have obeyed her guru. A guru shows the right path,” Babita added.
Babita further stated that Vinesh, who missed out on a medal in the Paris Olympics, should have focused on her wrestling career and could have won gold in 2028.
Babita, who joined the BJP in 2019, was not fielded as a candidate for the Haryana election but supported the party’s decision. “The party is bigger than the individual, and the country is bigger than the party,” she said, reaffirming her commitment to the BJP.