Chandigarh: Star coach and Dronacharya awardee Mahavir Phogat in political 'dangal'

CHANDIGARH: Real-life Dangal star and oldest of the famous Phogat wrestler sisters, Geeta Phogat, had said at a Varanasi event in 2017 that there shouldn't be any politics in sports. "Politicians should talk about sportspersons and sports, and it should surely be on their agenda when they go out asking for votes," she had added. Over a year later, the Phogat family has come full circle, with Dronacharya awardee Mahavir Phogat, who is the father and coach of "Dangal girls" Geeta and Babita, all set to start his political innings.


Days after the

Phogat sisters

expressed their support for Hisar MP Dushyant Chautala, the newly-formed Jannayak Janata Party (JJP) on Tuesday appointed Mahavir Phogat on a party post.



JJP was created after a split among the Chautalas heading the

Indian National Lok Dal

founded by former PM Devi Lal.
Phogat family seen at all events of Dushyant party
The heads of various wings of JJP were announced by Dushyant Chautala in New Delhi, according to a party press release. Ajay Chautala, a former MP and father of Dushyant is the founder of JPP. Ajay is undergoing a 10-year jail term with father Om Prakash Chautala since 2013 in a teachers' recruitment scam.

Mahavir Phogat will be the head of JPP’s sports wing as well as member of the party's core committee. The Phogat sisters and Mahavir Phogat were seen at all major events of JJP over the past two months. Dushyant Chautala, too, had attended functions organized by Phogats in their native Balali village.

Mahavir had expressed his desire to take a plunge into politics and to contest assembly elections from the state.

Besides Phogat, prominent among those who have got party posts include two former national vice-presidents of INLD, one former IAS officer, a former vice-chancellor and former leader of BJP legislative party. According to the release, a prominent Gujjar leader Anant Ram Tanwar and a senior Ahirwal leader, Rao Kanwar Singh Kalwadi, have been made senior national vice-presidents.

Ram Kumar Gautam, former BJP leader, who was the head of BJP legislative party in 2005, has been appointed national vice-president of JJP.

Another senior leader Telu Ram Jogi, who had worked with late PM Devi Lal, has been made national vice-president of the party while former bureaucrats Kirpa Ram Punia, who had recently resigned from BSP to join JJP, has been appointed member of executive committee and national vice-president. Former INLD leader and former vice-chancellor K C Bangar has been included in the core committee and appointed national vice-president of the party.



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