LS Polls: Gautam Gambhir may bat for BJP from New Delhi, says sources
Amid upcoming Lok Sabha elections, all political parties are gearing up for the poll battle and fielding popular faces to make sure their victory. According to media reports, former cricketer Gautam Gambhir may contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections that are scheduled in the month of April-May. The reports suggest that the 37-year-old cricketer may contest as BJP candidate from the prestigious New Delhi constituency. Currently, the constituency is held by BJP’s Meenakshi Lekhi.
However, the sources said that Meenakshi Lekhi may be accommodated in one of the other constituencies in the capital. The New Delhi has accounted for seven seats in the 545-member Lok Sabha.
Gautam Gambhir, a resident of Rajinder Nagar, which falls within the constituency. Notably, earlier also, it was reported that the former cricketer will join the saffron party, that was refuted by him. Gautam Gambhir has been awarded the Padma Sri, has been non-committal about joining politics.
Let us tell you, in 2014, Gautam Gambhir was a high-profile campaigner for Union Minister Arun Jaitley in Punjab’s Amritsar. However, Arun Jaitley lost the election to Congress's Amarinder Singh, now Chief Minister of Punjab.
Former Indian opening batsman recently took retirement from world cricket in December. Gambhir is known for strongly voicing his views on contemporary politics and incidents that have speculated of him joining active politics.
According to NDTV reports, BJP sources hint that Gautam Gambhir may be the ace that the party will introduce in Delhi, which is ruled by Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP. However, Gambhir has not yet reacted to the same.
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First published: 12 March 2019, 13:38 IST