BJP wants Ganguly to share dais with Modi, but 'dada' prefers to stay away

Former India cricket captain and current BCCI president Sourav Ganguly recently said  politics is not his cup of tea. “Sobai sob kichhur jonyo hoy na [everyone is not meant for every role],” Ganguly said when asked by a private TV channel about joining politics.

According to reports, the BJP is eager to have Ganguly share the stage with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a mega rally at the Brigade Parade Ground in Kolkata on Sunday (March 7).

The party wants the former captain on the dais primarily because it will make the PM’s rally stand out among all other rallies. It was speculated that Sourav could join politics as soon as he became the BCCI president, with Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s son Jay as BCCI secretary.

Sourav, however, has not laid out his cards yet, giving the impression that he is not keen on joining politics. “Ami mather lok [I am a sportsman]. Keep your questions restricted to cricket only,” Ganguly told the channel when it tried to dig further into his political ambitions.

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Sourav’s friend and CPI-M leader Asok Bhattacharya told The Times of India that ‘Maharaj’, as Ganguly is fondly called, did not want to join politics. “Sourav called me today. He told me that he is content with what he is doing and doesn’t want to join politics,” Bhattacharya said.

When asked, Bengal BJP leaders said they had no clue about Sourav joining Modi’s Brigade meeting on March 7. “We have no idea if he is coming, but if he comes he is most welcome,” said BJP state general secretary Sayantan Basu.