PANAJI
Fledgling politician Sonali Phogat and her aides Sudhir Sangwan and Sukhwinder Singh allegedly took party drugs in the Anjuna resort, barely three and half hours after they checked in the now partially sealed venue on August 22.
Confidential information with The Goan reveals the 42-year-old was allegedly given drugs by her personal assistant Sangwan, aged 39 years, and his friend Singh (33) around 7:30 pm which is when they also ordered snacks in the resort. Sources said that Phogat was in fact forced to take the party drugs thrice within 6-7 hours in what proved her fatal.
“The trio checked in the resort at around 4 pm. Phogat was lodged in L17 while Sangwan and Singh were in L23 Deluxe Cottage. They freshened up in their respective cottages and around 6:30-7 pm, alleged drug peddler Rama Mandrekar handed over the banned substance to one Dattaprasad Gaonkar near the gate,” sources said.
Gaonkar then sold the drugs to Sangwan and Singh for Rs 5000 and Rs 7000 respectively. The price varied either due to the quantum or the quality each had purchased.
After spending some time in the pool, around 7.30 pm, the trio allegedly took drugs before leaving for Curlies. Sources said Sangwan smuggled the remaining contents in an empty bottle and his trousers.
As the revelation has yet again taken a murky twist, The Goan tried to connect with Superintendent of Police (North Goa) Shobhit Saxena to corroborate the report. His reply was awaited till Thursday night.
Singh, who was the first to reach Curlies around 10 pm, had booked the table. Phogat and her PA joined him around 11 pm.
Over an hour later, Sangwan allegedly forced her to drink a chemical-laced substance after which they were on the dance floor. Both the accused, who are soon to complete their 10 days of custodial interrogation, had again forced her to drink the suspicious liquid that Phogat, also an actor-media content creator, was not quite comfortable with.
Phogat then ordered continental food and drinks at midnight and returned to the crowded dance floor.
It was around 2:30 am on August 23 that the repercussions of an alleged drug overdose were noticeable. Sangwan took her to the ladies restroom where she vomited. It is also understood that she was taken back to the pub where an exhausted Phogat fell a couple of times.
At 4.27 am, as her condition deteriorated, her accused took her to the restroom where she was seen staggering. She was allegedly in a semi-conscious state for nearly two hours thereafter. A panicked Sangwan hid the remaining drugs in the toilet flush, which was recovered by the Anjuna police during the ongoing investigation.
The men hired a cab to take them back to the resort where she fainted and was eventually taken to a private hospital, where she was declared brought dead.
At a press conference last Friday, Inspector General of Police Omvir Singh quoted the alleged accused’s confession about drugging the actor-politician. “We confronted the two accused with the CCTV footage of Curlies where Sangwan and Singh were partying with Phogat. They forced her into drinking some substance. Both confessed they intentionally intoxicated her with an obnoxious chemical,” he had said.
The victim was not clear to the senses after her first drink, despite which her associates forced her to have a second drink.
The external blunt injuries found on her body was when the accused tried to revive her in the toilet before leaving for the resort and later private hospital.
