Railways Initiate Dismissal Process for Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Poonia After Congress Affiliation

New Delhi : Northern Railway has initiated the process of accepting the resignations of wrestlers Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Poonia. According to railway sources, both athletes are expected to be formally relieved of their duties “as soon as possible.”

Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Poonia recently joined the Congress party. Vinesh has been fielded as the Congress candidate from the Julana assembly constituency in Haryana. A senior railway official commented, “Typically, railway employees are required to serve a three-month notice period after resignation. However, in this case, we have decided to relax that rule for the two athletes.”

Quick Release Expected Sources suggest that Phogat and Poonia “will likely be released very soon, possibly today.” Previously, Northern Railway had issued a show-cause notice to the two wrestlers after they met Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to join his party.

Compliance with Service Norms Northern Railway explained that the show-cause notice was part of standard service norms since Phogat and Poonia were government employees. Following the notice, both submitted their resignations. There had been concerns that Phogat might be unable to contest the election due to the three-month notice period rule.

According to election regulations, Phogat must be officially released from her railway position before running in the upcoming election. A Northern Railway official clarified that now that the resignation process is underway, there is no obstacle to Phogat contesting the election.

Vinesh Phogat had resigned from her role at Northern Railway prior to joining the Congress. She was serving as an Officer on Special Duty (OSD). In her resignation, Phogat expressed her gratitude, stating that her time with the Railways had been the “most memorable and glorious” period of her life. Her monthly salary in the role exceeded Rs 1 lakh.