A tweet on Wednesday evening by former Indian cricket team captain, Sourav Ganguly in which he stated that he is going to begin a ‘new chapter of his life’ has led to strong speculations that the BJP is going to send him to the Rajya Sabha. In his tweet, Sourav wrote, “2022 marks the 30th year since the start of my journey with cricket in 1992. Since then, cricket has given me a lot… Today, I am planning to start something that I feel will probably help a lot of people. I hope you continue your support as I enter this chapter of my life.” Ever since this tweet, speculation was rife that Ganguly might take the political plunge, something for which he has been repeatedly approached, albeit unsuccessfully, by the BJP in the past. The Daily Guardian Review reached out to him on his mobile number for a confirmation or a denial about whether he has been offered a nomination to the Rajya Sabha. No response was received till the time of going to the press. But later a few media reports claimed that Ganguly had said that “I have not resigned: I am launching a new education app worldwide. There is no resignation…”
BJP has been looking for a local face to counter Mamata Banerjee and it believes that with Ganguly, who is immensely popular in the state, on their side, they will be able to dislodged the TMC government when the elections are held in 2026.
The reluctance behind Ganguly being associated with the BJP, has been attributed to his stand of being apolitical, something that has helped him profession
ally post his retirement from national cricket in 2008.
This newspaper also reached out to Ganguly’s family friend and BJP leader Baishali Dalmia for a confirmation on this development, she told this newspaper, “This is a rumour. His tweet is about a new ad campaign that he is going to start soon.”
Earlier, Sachin Tendulkar was nominated to the Rajya Sabha in 2012 by the then UPA government. However, according to sources from both within the BJP as well as local sources close to Ganguly whom the Daily Guardian Review spoke to including a top BJP functionary, it was highly likely that Ganguly was being sent to the Rajya Sabha as one of the nominated candidates by the President of India. The President can nominate 12 members of eminence from India to the upper house. As of today, there are six vacancies under the category, as the term for Boxer Mary Kom, Subramanium Swamy, Swapan Dasgupta, KTS Tulsi, Narendra Jhadav, Suresh Gopi has ended in the recent past. Sources within the BJP also indicated that the plans for Ganguly’s political innings was charted out in Kolkata when Union Home Minister Amit Shah along with a battery of other senior BJP leaders including Leader of opposition of Bengal Assembly Suvendu Adhikari, State president Sukanta Mazumdar visited Ganguly’s residence in South Kolkata’s Behala for a dinner. “It was due for a long time. The BJP had been wanting Sourav Ganguly to join the party even before the assembly elections, but that did not happen. Now he is most likely being nominated to the Rajya Sabha and this was discussed with him during his meeting with Amit Shah at his house in April,” a senior BJP functionary told The Daily Guardian Review. Ganguly is currently the President of the BCCI, the top cricket governing body of India and has still not put in his resignation paper from the BCCI.
