NEW DELHI: India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has revealed that it is negotiating with star cricketers Gautam Gambhir and MS Dhoni for a ticket to contest in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections from their respective states of Delhi and Jharkhand, The Sunday Guardian reports.
Gambhir’s name cropping up isn’t a surprise as Dainik Jagran had reported in August this year about the ruling party’s intentions to bring him on board in order to increase its popularity in the capital. Should he, as expected, confirm his candidature, he will likely replace Meenakshi Lekhi as the party’s candidate to contest the New Delhi constituency.
A senior BJP leader, who wished to remain anonymous, was quoted as saying to The Sunday Guardian: “Reports from the ground about Meenakshi Lekhi are not good. People from her constituency are not happy with her work and the party leadership has decided that she will not be repeated this time as a candidate from New Delhi. Gautam Gambhir, in most likelihood, will be the party’s candidate from the same seat. He has wide acceptability and is known for his social work. He is a Delhiite and will do his best for the people of Delhi.”
However, this is the first time that MS Dhoni’s name has come up when it comes to having a potential political career. Besides Gambhir, the former India captain is also all set to be a star campaigner for BJP, which is aiming to defend its position of power across the country in 2019.
Despite giving up India’s leadership reins and retiring from Test cricket, Dhoni continues to have a strong mass appeal across the nation. The move may seem ideal for him as well as the party, seeing that the World Cup in England next summer could well determine his cricketing swansong.
“Both players have wide acceptability, respect and credibility across the country and are regarded as leaders by all sections of society. They are not only leaders from their respective states, but also leaders of the country. Dhoni is currently the captain of the Chennai Super Kings team playing at the IPL (Indian Premier League) and thus has reach and mass base even in the southern parts of India. Both these players joining the party will be an asset for us,” the BJP leader told the publication.
