Vinesh Phogat first reaction to Brij Bhushan's 'cheating' allegation: 'Pain of not getting medal...'

A day after BJP leader Brij Bhushan accused her of "cheating", Wrestler and Congress leader Vinesh Phogat said, "…the pain of not getting a medal had lessened as I arrived at the airport in India."

On the question about Brij Bhushan allegations, Phogat said, “Brij Bhushan is not the country, people are standing with me, they are my own…Brij Bhushan never existed for me.”

“Whatever I have won in wrestling, it was because of people. Hopefully, I will be successful in this as well. I will talk about the wrestlers' protest at Jantar Mantar later, BJP had allowed us to sit there,” Phogat said.

She said, “My own people have supported and I will succeed in all the wars…I have been facing challenges.”

Vinesh Phogat's comments came a day after former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan accused Phogat of ‘cheating’ and said, “You went there [Paris Olympics] by cheating. God has punished you for the same."

“I want to ask Vinesh Phogat whether a player can give trials in 2 weight categories in a day. Can the trials be stopped for 5 hours after the weigh-in?… You did not win the wrestling, you went there by cheating. God has punished you for the same,” the former WFI President said.

Bhushan had also lashed out the wrestlers Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia for joining the Congress ahead of the Haryana Assembly Elections.

Earlier on Sunday, Bajrang Punia accused Brij Bhushan Singh of ‘gloating’ at the recent Olympic loss faced by Vinesh Phogat.

“Agar ladkiyon mei thappad maarne ki himmat uss waqt hoti, to aapko bahut saare thappad lagte [If the girls had the courage to slap you back then, you would have been slapped many times]. Brij Bhushan Singh is a history sheeter, with charges from theft to sedition. The BJP is supporting him,” Punia told India Today.

Olympians Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia were at the forefront of the wrestlers' protest against former WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. Phogat and Punia entered the political arena on Friday by joining the Congress with a vow of "not being scared or backing off".