Wrestlers Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia have officially joined the Congress party and will be candidates in the upcoming Haryana Assembly elections, as reported by NDTV. Vinesh Phogat, 30, will contest the Julana seat, currently held by Amarjeet Dhanda of the Jannayak Janta Party, while Bajrang Punia, also 30, will run for the Badli seat under the Congress banner. The two athletes met with Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, in Delhi shortly after the Congress Central Election Committee (CEC) finalized its candidate list for the October 5 elections.

There are rumors that Congress might also consider offering Vinesh Phogat the Charkhi Dadri seat. The CEC has shortlisted 59 candidates, including 27 of the party’s 28 current legislators. This development comes amid ongoing talks about a potential pre-election alliance between Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), with Congress reportedly offering seven seats while AAP is asking for ten.

Deepak Babaria, the AICC in-charge for Haryana, stated that the final candidate list would be released by September 4, although neither Phogat's nor Punia's candidacies were officially discussed in the recent meeting.

After being disqualified from the Paris Olympics due to weight issues, Vinesh Phogat was warmly welcomed by Congress leaders, including Rohtak MP Deepender Hooda. On August 23, Phogat visited the Hoodas in Delhi with her husband, Somvir Rathee. She also joined farmers protesting at the Shambhu site on August 31 but remained silent on her political plans.

With 2,556 leaders seeking tickets, Congress is in the process of finalizing its candidates for the single-phase election on October 5, with results expected on October 8.