Dheeraj Dhoopar questions 'Lock Upp 2' cheating row, says re-entry of Harshad Chopda was more unfair
ETimes July 30, 2026 04:39 PM
Days after his eviction from ' Lock Upp 2 ', actor Dheeraj Dhoopar has questioned the controversy surrounding the alleged cheating row involving him after wife Vinny Arora tried to sneak in chits through personal items in the game show.
The actor argued that the re-entry of previously eliminated contestants, Harshad Chopda and Yogesh gave them a greater advantage in the game, and was more unfair instead of chits that never reached him in the first place.
"Which cheating? The one where two people came back into the game or the cheating that never reached me? What do you call cheating?" he said.
The actor was referring to the return of previously evicted contestants Yogesh Rawat and Harshad Chopda, who re-entered the show as challengers after allegedly watching episodes from outside before competing in a task that ultimately led to Dhoopar's eviction.
"They were taken out, shown the episodes, understood what everyone was saying, how everyone was playing, and then brought back into the game as challengers. Isn't that cheating?" Dhoopar asked.
Clarifying the chit controversy, the actor maintained that he never received the alleged messages and said his wife Vinny had acted only out of concern for his health.
"The cheating never reached me. If I had been in my family's place and Vinny had gone inside after being unwell, I would also have tried to send a message asking if she was okay. She didn't do anything wrong. It was an emotional call, not cheating," he said.
He further added, "She was only worried about my health. Nothing else. This was also written in the letter, which Riteish told everyone. It didn't say anything about the show," Dhoopar added.
Reiterating his stand, the actor said he found the return of eliminated contestants far more unfair than the chits that never reached him.
"They watched four or five episodes, understood everyone's chemistry, logic and gameplay, and then were brought back into the competition. Isn't that cheating?" he asked.
For the uninitiated, during his stint on the reality show, Dhoopar was issued a warning by jailer Riteish Deshmukh after the makers alleged that his family had twice attempted to send him handwritten chits containing outside information. While the notes were intercepted before reaching the actor, the incident sparked a controversy.
Later, Dheeraj Dhoopar's wife, Vinny Arora who had entered the show as a guest, accepted responsibility, saying the messages were sent out of concern for his health and did not contain game strategy.
