Vinesh Phogat Wins Haryana’s Julana Seat Election

Congress’s Vinesh Phogat Wins Debut Election from Haryana’s Julana

In the Haryana Assembly elections, Congress candidate and wrestler Vinesh Phogat won the Julana seat, defeating BJP’s Yogesh Kumar by a margin of 6,015 votes. According to the Election Commission, this was Phogat’s debut election.

Initially, Phogat took the lead during the counting but trailed at one point. However, she regained her lead and ultimately achieved a comfortable victory. Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) candidate Surender Lather finished third in this high-profile constituency.

In the 2019 elections, the seat was won by Amarjeet Dhanda of the Jannayak Janta Party (JJP), which was part of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA). In 2014 and 2009, the seat was won by INLD candidate Parminder Singh Dhull.

Haryana voted in a single phase on October 5, recording a voter turnout of 67.90%. Julana witnessed a voter turnout of 74.66%.

Phogat, a three-time Olympian, led protests against former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Singh. She joined the Congress on September 6. Phogat was disqualified from the 2024 Paris Olympics for being overweight ahead of what would have been a historic final in the women’s 50kg wrestling event.