Actress and Haryana BJP leader Sonali Phogat died of a heart attack in Goa at the age of 42. Phogat, a former Tik Tok star who had also participated in the reality TV show "Bigg Boss", was on a visit to Goa along with some of her staff members.
Goa Director General of Police Jaspal Singh told PTI that Phogat complained of uneasiness while she was at 'Curlies' restaurant in Anjuna from where she was taken to the hospital. He, however, ruled out any foul play in the case.
“There are no external injury marks on the body,” Singh said, adding that the postmortem report will reveal the exact cause of the death.
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,” he said.
According to media reports, Sonali’s elder sister Ramon Phogat claimed that the former was feeling unwell last night and had complained about food.
According to Ramon, Sonali told their mother over phone last night that she was feeling uneasy after eating food. She had also raised suspicion that her food had been adulterated, and that someone was conpiring against her.
The body was sent to the state-run Goa Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) at Bambolim for postmortem. Forensic experts at the GMCH will conduct the postmortem, Singh said.
Notably, Sonali’s husband Sanjay was found dead at his farmhouse in Haryana under mysterious circumstances in 2016. The deceased BJP leader is survived by her daugbter Yashodhara.
Phogat had unsuccessfully contested from Adampur Assembly constituency in Hisar against Kuldeep Bishnoi in the 2019 Assembly election. Bishnoi, who was then in the Congress, recently joined the BJP.
Phogat was active on social media and had recently posted photos of her meeting with Bishnoi. She had participated in a Janmashtami festival function in Hisar a few days back.
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