The private life of boxing icon Mary Kom has taken a dramatic turn, as her ex-husband, Karung Onkholer, has responded to her recent allegations that he mismanaged her finances and left her bankrupt.
Mary Kom had recently spoken out about the struggles she faced while recovering from a major injury, describing a period in which she discovered her finances were in disarray. She claimed that Onkholer had taken loans, mortgaged her properties, and transferred assets into his own name — actions that left her “living a lie” and betrayed by someone she had trusted for nearly two decades.
In a strong rebuttal, Onkholer has now made his own claims, saying that their 18-year marriage was marred by infidelity. He alleged that Mary Kom had multiple affairs during their time together — with a junior boxer in 2013 and someone associated with her boxing academy since 2017. Onkholer said he had remained silent for years to protect the family but felt compelled to speak out after being accused of theft. “I have their WhatsApp messages as proof,” he said.
He also denied ever stealing from her, pointing to his current modest lifestyle as evidence. “She said I stole 5 crores. Check my account… look at my house,” he said. Challenging her to provide legal proof, he added, “If the property is in my name, then she’d have the documents, right? Let her bring those documents, and then we’ll speak.”
The public clash comes in the wake of Mary Kom’s revelations to PTI, where she described the pain of realizing her financial troubles while bedridden before the 2022 Commonwealth Games. “It was then that I realized the man I had trusted was not what I believed him to be,” she said. “I did not want it to become a spectacle, so I sought a divorce after several attempts to resolve things privately.” She also claimed that Onkholer had been slandering her for a year and putting her assets at risk, borrowing money from locals in Churachandpur and leaving her properties vulnerable.
While Mary Kom maintains that she is a victim of financial abuse, Onkholer insists that he acted lawfully and portrays himself as the one who was heartbroken by the breakdown of their marriage.