When Rathore hit bull’s eye, Bhutia missed a sitter

ONE is usually front page, the other mostly at the back. But in election season, politics and sports converge, defying the old adage that the two do not and should not mix. Sports stars have long dotted the political firmament and will do so again this election with seasoned names like Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore and Kirti Azad in the reckoning and maybe some newbies like cricketer Gautam Gambhir joining their fray.

The 16th Lok Sabha featured accomplished sportspersons like Rathore as well as former cricketer Kirti Azad (in the BJP to start with and now with the Congress), former football captain Prasun Banerjee (TMC) and national-level shooter Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo (BJD). Deo won a trap gold at the national junior shooting championships in 1991.

Rathore, a double trap shooter, became a path-breaker when he was appointed the first sportsperson to helm the sports ministry in September 2017. He now holds independent charge of the I&B ministry. Rathore, Azad, who is in his third term in the Lower House, and Banerjee are, however, not the first and neither will they be the last.

The 15th Lok Sabha had, apart from Azad and Deo, former cricket captain Mohammed Azharuddin (Congress) and his ex-teammate Navjot Singh Sidhu (BJP).

Azharuddin was in the fray from Moradabad in 2014 as well but ended up on the losing side. Sidhu, on the other hand, made his way to the Rajya Sabha after being denied a ticket in 2014 and eventually quit the BJP to join the Congress.

In 2004, celebrated middle distance runner Jyotirmoyee Sikdar, who won two gold medals in her only Asian Games appearance, represented West Bengal’s Krishnanagar constituency for CPM. Among the earliest to make the seamless transition from sports to politics was hockey star Aslam Sher Khan — a World Cup gold-medallist and an Olympic bronze-medallist.

Khan was first elected to Lok Sabha in 1984. He won again in 1991 before losing four elections after that. Chetan Chauhan, the man who partnered Sunil Gavaskar in many a memorable stand, was a two-time MP, winning the Amroha constituency for the BJP in 1991 and 1998.

Not all have been successful though. Ex-cricketer Mohammed Kaif, who contested once in 2009 for Congress, lost from UP’s Phulpur, the constituency best known for being represented by Jawaharlal Nehru.

Iconic footballer Bhaichung Bhutia contested for the TMC in 2014, in what was termed a wave election for the party, but lost. He is, however, unfazed and has floated his own party in native state Sikkim for the upcoming polls.

Former national swimming champion-turned-actor Nafisa Ali tried her luck twice, with Congress in 2004 and SP in 2009, but didn’t win even once. Competitive role aside, sportspersons will play an active role in encouraging a higher voter turnout this election. — PTI