Kapil Dev, Kirti Azad join poll pitch

Deepankar Sharda

Chandigarh, May 25

Kapil Dev and Kirti Azad, captain and team member of the 1983 World Cup-winning India squad, are placed on the opposite sides in the political match between the BJP and the Congress in the Chandigarh parliamentary constituency.

Kapil has put his weight behind BJP’s Sanjay Tandon, who is also the president of the Union Territory Cricket Association (UTCA); ex-BJP MP Azad, now in the Trinamool Congress, is backing Manish Tewari of the Congress. Kapil, pertinently, is a voting member (Membership No. 1063) of the UTCA.

In a video message to Tandon posted on X (formerly Twitter), Kapil said: “Sanjay ji namaskar… I just want to wish you all the best for your elections. I know you have done a wonderful job with cricket. I hope you can take care of our city also. Meri taraf se tamam khushiya apko mile, aur ap isi tarah behtar se behtar kam karte rahe… Namaskar and good luck for the election.”

Azad, who is contesting the Bardhaman-Durgapur (West Bengal) seat as the Trinamool Congress candidate, also published a video message in support of Tewari. He praised Tewari for helping him fight a legal battle against corruption in the Delhi & Districts Cricket Association (DDCA).

“States like Chandigarh should be thankful to him (Tewari) as he fought corruption in cricket. It was the battle (against DDCA) that led to the formation of the Lodha Committee and many state associations got the BCCI affiliation,” said Azad while talking to The Tribune over the phone. “He didn’t charge a single penny and stood rock-solid with me and Bishan Singh Bedi. Besides being a public representative, he proved his intentions by supporting the sportspersons for a noble cause. He must be given a chance to serve the Chandigarh public,” said Azad.

Azad has a past with the BJP. He was a party MLA from Gol Market and an MP from Darbhanga, Bihar. He was suspended by the BJP in 2015 for criticising Arun Jaitley, then Union Finance Minister, over alleged irregularities and corruption in the DDCA. His father, Bhagwat Jha Azad, served as the Bihar CM for a little over a year in 1988-89.

“Sanjay ji namaskar… I just want to wish you all the best for your elections. I know you have done a wonderful job with cricket. I hope you can take care of our city also. Meri taraf se tamam khushiya apko mile, aur ap isi tarah behtar se behtar kam karte rahe…” Kapil Dev posts on X

“States like Chandigarh should be thankful to him (Tewari) as he fought corruption in cricket. It was the battle (against DDCA) that led to the formation of the Lodha Committee and many state associations got the BCCI affiliation,” said Kirti Azad over phone