Phogat's family meets Haryana CM, seeks CBI probe

Chandigarh, Aug 28 (IANS) The family of Haryana BJP leader Sonali Phogat, who died under mysterious circumstances in Goa, have met Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar here and sought a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into her death.

Her daughter Yashodhara appealed to the public to respect the privacy of the aggrieved family and not to project her slain mother in a bad light.

The family met the Chief Minister at his residence late Saturday.

The Chief Minister assured all possible help to the family of Phogat. He assured them that he had already spoken to the Goa Chief Minister about the incident, a senior official in the Chief Minister's Office told IANS on Sunday.

"The Chief Minister assured them that the Haryana government will write a letter to the Goa government about the CBI inquiry," he added.

After meeting the Chief Minister, an emotional Yashodhara appealed to the media not to portray her mother in bad taste.

She demanded that those responsible for her mother's death be brought to justice.

Earlier, victim's brother Rinku Dhaka said the motive behind the murder could be property and money.

But he said his family is "satisfied" with the police investigation into her death in Goa.

"After I reached Goa on August 23, I called up Sudhir to understand what happened. He told me that he was in the hotel room and the body was in the Goa Medical College," Dhaka told the media.

"If you want to see the body, go there and if you have any work with me, meet me in the hotel. After seeing the body, I went to the police station following which Inspector Desai accompanied me to the hotel where Sudhir was staying. The inspector did all the talking with him."

The actress was taken to Goa on the pretext of a film shoot. "I didn't see any actors or film shoots. There was no one apart from Sudhir and Sukhwinder Singh."

Dhaka was categorically clear in saying that the motive behind the murder could be property and money. He even blamed Sudhir for the theft in Sonali's house.

Last year TikTok star Phogat had reported theft of jewellery, a licenced revolver, Rs 10 lakh cash and valuables from her house in Hisar town.

Sonali's brother-in-law, Kuldeep Phogat, said she was given poison and was locked in a washroom. "They hit her and there are bruises."

The last rites of Sonali were held on Friday even as a large number of people turned up to pay their last respects.

Phogat, who had landed in a controversy for allegedly beating up an official with her slipper, had unsuccessfully contested the 2019 Assembly elections from Mandi Adampur, losing to Congress candidate Kuldeep Bishnoi, the son of former Haryana Chief Minister Bhajan Lal.

Bishnoi this month joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) along with his wife, Renuka, who was also in the Congress.

The Goa police have so far arrested four persons in connection with her murder.

A court in Goa on Saturday granted a 10-day police custody of Sudhir Sangwan and Sukhwinder Singh.