Did Sonali Phogat die of a meth overdose?

Did Sonali Phogat die of a meth overdose?

That’s the question being asked.

On Saturday, Goa Police arrested a restaurant owner and a drug peddler in connection with the alleged murder of Haryana-based BJP leader.

This after meth was seized from a toilet of Arjuna Shack which belongs to Curlies owner Edwin Nunes, according to The Times of India.

Deputy Superintendent of Police Jivba Dalvi told News18 leftovers from the drugs which were given to her at Curlies Restaurant at Anjuna have been seized from the restaurant’s washroom.

Dattaprasad Gaonkar, a peddler, allegedly provided drugs to Phogat’s two associates who fed them to her, police said.

Edwin Nunes, the other person arrested on Saturday, is the owner of the Curlies restaurant in North Goa district where Phogat and her associates partied and where she was allegedly drugged hours before her death.

Her associates Sudhir Sagwan and Sukhwinder Singh, arrested earlier, allegedly told police that they had procured drugs from Gaonkar, the official said.

Gaonkar and Nunes were booked under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, he added.

Phogat, a former TikTok star and contestant on the reality show Big Boss, died on 23 August, a day after arrival in Goa.

But what is meth? What are its effects?

Let’s take a closer look:

What is meth?

The US justice department defines meth as a powerful, highly addictive stimulant drug that dramatically affects the central nervous system.

It is usually illegally produced and distributed.

It comes in several forms including powder, crystal, rocks, and tablets.  When it comes in the crystal form it is called “crystal meth,” as per the justice department.

It can be ingested in a slew of ways: smoked, swallowed, snorted or injected using a hypodermic needle.

As per the Mayo clinic, methamphetamine can used to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

It increases attention and decreases restlessness in children and adults who are overactive, cannot concentrate for very long, or are easily distracted and impulsive.

This medicine in tablet form is used as part of a total treatment program that also includes social, educational, and psychological treatment and is available only with a doctor’s prescription, as per the report.

Why is it so addictive?

Meth users may experience a ‘temporary sense of heightened euphoria, alertness, and energy’, as per the US Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSA).

Meth increases high levels of dopamine – a natural chemical involved in body movement, motivation, and reinforcing rewarding behaviours – in the brain’s ‘reward areas’.

This forms a desire to continue using meth which can devolve into addiction.

As per the justice department, meth changes how the brain works as well as speeds up the body’s system to dangerous and lethal levels — uses can face increased blood pressure and heart and respiratory rates.

What are the possible side effects

As per SAMSA, It can have the following side effects:

• High blood pressure leading to heart attacks, strokes, and death
• Permanent damage to the heart and brain
• Liver, kidney, and lung damage
• Anxiety, confusion, and insomnia
• Paranoia, hallucinations, mood disturbances, delusions, or violent behaviour (psychotic symptoms can sometimes last for months or years after meth use) Intense itching, causing skin sores from scratching
• Premature osteoporosis
• Severe dental problems

What’s the treatment?

There are currently no Food and Drug Administration-approved medications to treat meth addiction, but behavioural therapies can be effective.

One example is cognitive-behavioural therapy, which helps people cope with situations that may prompt drug use.

Another example uses motivational incentives in the form of vouchers or rewards that the person can earn as encouragement for not using meth or other substances.

Could it have killed Phogat?

Maybe.

An expert speaking to Indian Express said methamphetamine on its own might not cause the heart attack but it can result in a cardiac arrest if consumed in an excess quantity.

“The recreational drugs can lead to over sedation, which can affect the organs, including the heart,” the expert said.

‘Gaonkar sold drugs to Sagwan, Singh’

On the face of it, Gaonkar sold drugs to Sagwan and Singh who made Phogat consume them during the party at Curlies restaurant on the intervening night of 22 and 23 August, the police official said.

Nunes was arrested as drugging occurred at his restaurant, he earlier said.

CCTV footage of Phogat at Curlies restaurant in North Goa hours before her death went viral on social media.

In one of the videos, Phogat can be seen dancing with one of the arrested accused Sudhir Sagwan. The BJP leader is seen sporting a tiara with LED lights on her head.

The video also shows Sagwan forcing her to drink water, which she instantly spits out.

Inspector General of Police Omvir Singh Bishnoi had earlier told reporters that Sagwan had mixed some ‘obnoxious substance’ in the water, which caused her death.

Another video shows Phogat being escorted out of the restaurant by the accused. In the footage, she is seen staggering and almost falling near the staircase on her way out of the restaurant.

Phogat was brought dead to St Anthony Hospital at Anjuna in North Goa district on 23 August  morning from the hotel where she was staying.

The doctors said she had had a heart attack, but her brother alleged that Sagwan and Singh, who had arrived in Goa with her, had played a role in her death.

The duo were detained and a First Information Report for murder was registered after the autopsy report said that there were multiple “blunt force injuries” on her body though it reserved opinion on the cause of death pending chemical analysis.

Police had said the “economic interest” could be a motive behind her killing.

A local court on Saturday remanded Sagwan and Singh in police custody for ten days.

Nunes had told PTI earlier that Phogat had visited his restaurant `like any other customer’ but he had not met her. Opposition Congress, meanwhile, demanded a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the alleged murder, saying the case could be hushed up otherwise.

“Many politicians said her death was due to a heart attack. But finally it has been revealed as murder. There is more to this murder than meets the eye and every angle needs to be investigated. These kinds of cases need to be investigated by the CBI," Leader of Opposition in Goa Assembly Michael Lobo told PTI.

With inputs from agencies

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