Family Members Suspect Foul Play in Sonali Phogat’s Death in Goa

Actress and politician Sonali Phogat’s family has raised questions about her death in Goa. They’ve asked the CBI to intervene and look into the case. 

The BJP Leader from Hisar in Haryana died of a suspected heart attack in Goa on Monday night. She complained of uneasiness and was declared dead by the hospital when she was brought in. 

She had posted four images and two videos on Monday between 7 pm and 8 pm on Instagram where she was seen adorning a pink turban. 

Sonali had gone to Goa with a group. Her sister couldn’t believe that she passed away as a result of cardiac arrest and said that she hinted at something suspicious on the phone. 

“My sister cannot have a heart attack. She was very fit. We demand a proper investigation by CBI. My family is not ready to accept that she died of a heart attack. She had no such medical problem," one of her sisters”, Rupesh, told news agency ANI.

“I received a call from her the evening before her death. She said she wanted to talk over WhatsApp and said that something fishy is going on... later, she cut the call and then didn't pick up,” she added.

Another sister told reporters in Hisar that Sonali told her mother that she didn’t feel well after eating food. 

The brother of Sonali, Rinku Dhaka, said that she had spoken to her mother, sister and brother-in-law a short while before her death and had complained about two of her colleagues. 

The police have registered a case of unnatural death according to news agency PTI. 

“We're taking it seriously. The (police chief) is himself monitoring. Investigation and postmortem reports will come to him. A preliminary assessment points at cardiac arrest," Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant told reporters in Panjim, Goa.

Sonali Phogat was a content creator. She rose to fame with her Tik Tok videos. She made an appearance as a contestant in reality show Big Boss 2020. The actress joined the BJP party in 2008. 

Goa police chief Jaspal Singh told PTI there was "no foul play" but a post-mortem would confirm the cause. The family however prefers the post-mortem to be conducted at the All Indian Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi or at AIIMS, Jaipur according to the brother.