BJP leader Sonali Phogat’s two associates arrested for murder’

India

pti-PTI

Panaji, Aug 25:
Goa
Police
on
Thursday
arrested
two
associates
of
Haryana-based
BJP
leader
Sonali
Phogat
in
connection
with
her
murder’ after
the
post-mortem
report
said
there
were
“multiple
blunt
force
injuries”
on
her
body.

Accused
Sudhir
Sagwan
and
Sukhwinder
Wasi
had
arrived
in
Goa
with
Phogat
(42)
on
August
22.
Phogat,
who
first
found
fame
on
TikTok,
was
brought
dead
to
St
Anthony
Hospital
at
Anjuna
in
North
Goa
district
on
August
23
morning.

Doctors
had
said
prima
facie
she
died
of
a
heart
attack.
Autopsy
was
conducted
on
her
body
on
Thursday
morning
and
soon
after
Anjuna
police
added
the
charge
of
murder
to
the
case
and
arrested
Sagwan
and
Wasi.

Both
the
accused
had
been
named
in
the
police
complaint
filed
by
Phogat’s
brother
Rinku
Dhaka
on
Wednesday.
The
autopsy
was
conducted
at
the
Goa
Medical
College
and
Hospital
after
her
family
agreed
to
the
procedure.

Dr
Sunil
Shrikant
Chimbolkar
of
the
Forensic
Science
Department
of
GMCH
in
his
report
reserved
the
opinion
on
the
cause
of
death.

“The
cause
of
death
due
to
the
best
of
my
knowledge
and
belief
is
reserved
pending
chemical
analysis.
Histopathology
and
serological
reports
of
the
tissues
preserved,”
the
report
said.

“However
there
are
multiple
blunt
force
injuries
over
the
body.
In
view
of
the
above,
the
manner
of
death
is
for
the
investigating
officer
to
ascertain,”
it
added.
The
autopsy
was
earlier
scheduled
on
Wednesday,
but
Phogat’s
brother
claimed
she
was
murdered
by
two
of
her
associates
and
the
family
would
agree
to
autopsy
only
after
an
FIR
was
registered
against
them.

On
Thursday
morning,
Sonali
Phogat’s
nephew
Mohinder
Phogat
told
PTI
that
the
family
had
consented
to
autopsy
on
condition
that
it
would
be
video-graphed.

Dhaka,
her
brother,
had
alleged
that
a
short
while
before
her
death,
Phogat
had
spoken
to
her
mother,
sister
and
brother-in-law.
She
sounded
disturbed
during
the
conversation
and
complained
against
her
two
colleagues,
he
claimed.

Three
years
ago,
one
of
her
aides
had
sexually
assaulted
her
after
spiking
her
food
and
later
blackmailed
her,
Dhaka
further
alleged
in
the
police
complaint.