On May 3, a video went viral on social media where former sprinter and Indian Olympics Association’s chief PT Usha was seen being heckled by protesters at Jantar Mantar. The woman who heckled PT Usha was later seen crying with the protesting wrestlers in the night. She has been identified as Sudesh Goyat, a career protestor who was seen at almost every protest that made national and international headlines.
Can't believe IOA president legend athlete PT Usha is being humiliated like this. Protester wrestlers won't achieve anything out of this. Why media is not covering this?pic.twitter.com/N2n7SfM9hc
— The Hawk Eye (@thehawkeyex) May 3, 2023
In the video, Goyat points the finger at PT Usha and says, “But you have disrespected women”. When someone asked her not to disrespect her, she said, “Why not? When she got medals, we respected her. Now she is disrespecting those who got medals…” and then she went inaudible in the video.
OpIndia decided to dig into her career as a professional protester. During the recent protest, she is being widely covered by several media outlets for two reasons. First, she is a popular face in protests. Second, she is the wife of an Army veteran.
In a 23-minute long video by National Dastak dedicated to Goyat’s thoughts on the wrestler’s protest, she claimed that the administration cut the electricity supply. Interestingly, it was earlier reported that the administration does not provide electricity to any protesters at the site. They have to arrange their own generator. She further claimed that the wrestlers are not seeking Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh’s resignation but are protesting to get justice for the athletes who were allegedly harassed. However, one of the demands that wrestlers have put forward is the resignation of Singh.
She further claimed no one questioned when only one state brought medals to the wrestling tournaments. Notably, WFI changed the selection process in 2021 to ensure other states get a chance in qualification rounds for the international tournaments. It is allegedly one of the reasons that the wrestlers of Haryana are not happy with Singh’s leadership at WFI. Recently, in a statement in front of the media, Vinesh Phogat clearly stated the wrestlers protesting would not compete in nationals and would prefer to compete in the Olympics directly.
In a recent interview with The Janta Live, she claimed the government sent PT Usha as part of its conspiracy to end the protests. When it did not work, they attacked the wrestlers at night. Her claims do not add up with the series of events that happened last night. There were clear instructions from the Police that no one could enter the protest site at night. However, AAP leader Somnath Bharti brought cots at around 11 PM. When he was stopped, a scuffle broke down between wrestlers and police. Later, DCW chairperson Swati Mahiwal also reached the spot after 12:30 AM, but the police detained her. When she refused to leave, female police personnel gently picked her up and put her in the van and made sure she did not get hurt during the process.
Notably, Goyat was seen crying when Vinesh Phogat gave a statement to the press after the scuffle between wrestlers and police.
VIDEO | "The way they have made us suffer, I would not want any athlete to win a medal for the country," says wrestler Vinesh Phogat. pic.twitter.com/EpSk6dc3ZL
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) May 3, 2023
Goyat claimed the Pulwama attack happened inside Army Cantt
In an interview with The Janta Live on April 26, Goyat made a bizarre claim that the Pulwama attack happened inside Army Cantt. She accused the government of conspiring the attack that resulted in the death of 40 soldiers. However, her claims are false, as the attack occurred on a National Highway from where the convoy carrying the soldiers passed.
Essentially, Goyat used the wrestlers’ protest to lie about the Pulwama Attack and also shift blame from Pakistan to Indian govt.
OpIndia scrolled through the social media accounts of Goyat. We found that whenever a protest found its way into the national and international media, Goyat became part of it.
She was actively involved in the farmer’s protest. In a video during the protests, she claimed women are not considered farmers. It is notable that the government has worked extensively for the women indulged in farming. The government of India had instructed states and other implementing agencies to incur at least 30% of expenditure on women.
Schemes like Mahila Kisan Sashaktikaran Pariyojana (MKSP) are proving to be beneficiaries for women in farming. Despite such schemes, protesters like Goyat often use different platforms to make unsubstantial claims.
Twitter user Total_woke_ pointed out that Goyat has been seen in every possible anti-Modi protest. She allegedly abused Hindus and even supported Khalistanis.
She is found at every anti Modi protest, abusing Hindus, defending Khalistanis, supporting jehadis, the usual dhanda of professional protestors. No wonder Time magazine, covered her 😊 pic.twitter.com/W9d99BeUax
— Eminent Intellectual (@total_woke_) May 4, 2023
She also found her way to Time magazine. Time wrote, “A gender-rights activist from Haryana, Sudesh Goyat, has been at the Tikri protest site since the very beginning, helping mobilize women and organize for January 18 to be recognized as Women Farmers Day. “Women work equally in the fields with the men. It’s only right they should be here to protest,” she says. “The awareness among women about their own power has never been higher than now.”
Twitter user Mr Sinha pointed out Goyat protested against Agnipath Scheme as well.
She was there in protest against the Agnipath scheme as well.
— Mr Sinha (@MrSinha_) May 4, 2023
A perfect andolan jeevi like Yogendra Yadav…. Seems like it's her profession! pic.twitter.com/P1MjcPINlU
In a Twitter thread, Vijay Patel showed how she was seen with the likes of Yogendra Yadav, Medha Patkar, Rakesh Tikait, Prashant Bhushan and more.
Here she is with multiple actor cum designer protester Yogendra Yadav pic.twitter.com/SzVVwD5UeF
— Vijay Patel🇮🇳 (@vijaygajera) May 4, 2023
There have been countless instances where Goyat rushed to participate in the ongoing protests. She started her journey as a professional protester during the One Rank One Pension protests and, since then, continued to be part of any and every protest where she could get some media coverage.
