Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and TikTok star Sonali Phogat died of a heart attack in Goa on Monday, 22 August.
Phogat had reportedly gone to Goa for a shoot for two days. The 41-year-old actor-turned-politician had complained of uneasiness to her staff on Monday, after which she was taken to St Anthony Hospital at Anjuna in North Goa district.
Deputy Superintendent of Police (Mapusa) Jivba Dalvi said she was brought dead to the hospital.
“Prime facie, the cause of death is established as heart attack but further medical examination is on. We will form a panel of doctors,” he said.
The post-mortem will be conducted at the state-run Goa Medical College and Hospital at Bambolim, the official said.
"She has passed away. I have been given information that she was in Goa," said Haryana BJP chief OP Dhankar.
BJP Hisar district president Capt Bhupender said, "Sonali ji was in Goa. I spoke to her assistant and he said that she died of a heart attack."
Political Career
Haryana BJP had fielded Phogat as its candidate for the Adampur seat in the 2019 Assembly elections in the state. She had lost the seat to Congress candidate Kuldeep Bishnoi, who recently switched over to the Bharatiya Janata Party.
In a conversation with The Quint in 2019, she had said that she was a farmer's daughter and had been a member of the BJP for 12 years. She joined the party in 2008. Phogat became the national vice president of the BJP Mahila Morcha, according to DNA.
Past Controversies
In 2019, Phogat was embroiled in a controversy when she delivered an alleged hate speech during her election campaign in Balasmand village of Adampur constituency. She asked people to chant ‘Bharat Mata ki Jai’ slogans and said that those who did not do so must be from Pakistan. She was criticised for her remark and later had to apologise.
In 2019, she had filed a police complaint against her sister and brother-in-law alleging that she was assaulted and threatened by the duo.
In 2020, Phogat landed in another controversy when she beat up Balsamand market secretary Sultan Singh with her footwear for allegedly hurling abuses at her.
(With inputs from DNA and PTI.)
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