Sonali Phogat, 42, died of a suspected heart attack on Monday night
Haryana BJP leader Sonali Phogat's family has raised questions about her death in Goa and have demanded an investigation by the CBI.
Sonali Phogat, 42, died of a suspected heart attack on Monday night. She was declared dead at a hospital. The police have registered a case of "unnatural death", according to news agency PTI. The post-mortem will be carried out by a medical board amid questions.
Denying reports of an arrest, the police said those close to her or working for her would be questioned as witnesses.
"We're taking it seriously. The (police chief) is himself monitoring. Investigation and postmortem reports will come to him. A preliminary assessment points at cardiac arrest,," said Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant told reporters in Panjim, Goa.
Sonali Phogat's sisters said they couldn't accept that she died of a heart attack. They also said she had "insinuated something" on the phone.
"My sister cannot have a heart attack. She was very fit. We demand a proper investigation by CBI. My family is not ready to accept that she died of a heart attack. She had no such medical problem," one of her sisters, Rupesh, told news agency ANI.
"I received a call from her the evening before her death. She said she wanted to talk over WhatsApp and said that something fishy is going on... later, she cut the call and then didn't pick up," she added.
Sonali Phogat, who had gone to Goa with a group, was taken to hospital after she complained of uneasiness. As her family questioned the circumstances of her death, Goa police chief Jaspal Singh told PTI there was "no foul play" but a post-mortem would confirm the cause.
Sonali Phogat, a content creator, rose to fame with her TikTok videos. She debuted as a TV anchor in 2006 before joining the BJP two years later.
She made her acting debut in 2016 with a TV show and also acted in a web series in 2019. She was a contestant in the 2020 edition of reality show Bigg Boss.
Sonali Phogat contested as a BJP candidate in the 2019 Haryana election and lost to Congress candidate Kuldeep Bishnoi. Mr Bishnoi, who recently joined the BJP, met with the actor-politician a few days ago and she even shared photos on social media.
On Monday, between 7 pm and 8 pm, she posted two videos and four images on Instagram, flaunting a pink turban.
Another sister, Raman, told reporters in Hisar that Sonali Phogat had called up her mother and told her about not feeling well after she had her food.
"She had said she was feeling uneasy. She sensed as if something was not right as if some conspiracy was being played against her. Later in the morning, we received news that she was no more," Raman was quoted as saying by PTI.
The family's stance spurred calls for a CBI probe by Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) politicians.
Sonali Phogat's husband Sanjay Phogat died in 2016 at 42. She has a teenage daughter.
The content creator often made controversial headlines. While campaigning for the Haryana election, she had asked a group of people at her rally if they were from Pakistan when they did not chant "Bharat Mata ki Jai".
Two years ago, a video showing her slapping an official in Hisar and beating him with a slipper went viral on social media.