Vinesh Phogat claims she refused to speak to PM Modi after Olympics, reveals reason

Former Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat claimed she refused to speak to Prime Minister Narendra Modi over a phone call after the Paris Olympics fiasco. Vinesh, who is now contesting the Haryana assembly elections as a Congress candidate from the Julana seat, said that she did not want her emotions and efforts to be leveraged for political gain. She claimed that she was told that two people would be present to record her interaction with PM Modi for social media.
“The call had come (from PM) but I refused to speak. The call did not come directly to me but Indian officials who were there informed me that he (PM Modi) wanted to talk. I was ready. However, they put conditions – no one from my team would be present, while two people from their side would record the conversation for social media. I didn’t want my emotions and hard work to be made fun of on social media,” Vinesh told the Lallantop.
She added that she would have appreciated a genuine conversation with the Prime Minister without any conditions to publicise it. Notably, PM Modi called and interacted with all the athletes who won medals in Paris to congratulate them for their efforts.
“If he truly cared about athletes, he could have called without recording it, and I would have been grateful. Maybe he knows if I speak to Vinesh she will ask about the last two years. Maybe that’s why I was instructed that there will be no phone from my side because they can edit (video) from their end but I will not edit. I will post the original video. So they denied,” she added.
Vinesh faced a disqualification from the 50kg wrestling final during the Paris Olympics 2024 due to a weight miss by just 100 grams, which ended her campaign on a heartbreaking note. Reflecting on the incident, she voiced her frustration over PM Modi’s silence during the wrestlers’ protests against former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief and BJP leader Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. Phogat and fellow Olympian Sakshi Malik were at the forefront of these protests, demanding legal action against Singh for alleged misconduct.