News Analysis India

Tag: Sourav Ganguly

  • West Bengal votes in mind, BJP may send Mithun da, Dona Ganguly to Rajya Sabha

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is planning to nominate actor-turned-politician Mithun Chakraborty and well-known Odissi dancer Dona Ganguly to the Rajya Sabha, sources said. The party expects the move to boost its prospects in West Bengal, they added. The duo will replace Rupa Ganguly and Swapan Dasgupta, whose terms came to an end recently. 

    Dona is the wife of former cricketer and current BCCI president Sourav Ganguly, who himself is said to be in the race. According to party insiders, the second seat would be given to either Dona or Sourav.

    Mithun Chakraborty had campaigned for the BJP in the last Assembly elections as well as the Lok Sabha bypolls. “He still has enormous magnetic appeal and it was seen during his campaign in the Asansol LS bypoll recently. He will certainly be an added advantage for us,” said a BJP leader with the caveat that only the top leadership can say anything on the record. Popularly known as ‘Disco Dancer’, a moniker conferred on him by his fans for his outstanding performance in the movie with the same name, has also become active in politics after a short gap. According to sources, he recently went to the West Bengal BJP office and expressed his willingness to spend time on party affairs in the state. 

    “Chakraborty’s nomination to the Rajya Sabha will not only give a strong message to the masses but it will also increase two votes for the upcoming vice-presidential elections,” said political analyst P K D Nambiar.

    READ COLUMN | Fresh and frozen decide Rajya Sabha choices

    At present, the saffron party has no representative from West Bengal in the Rajya Sabha ahead of upcoming vice-presidential elections after the terms of Ganguly and Dasgupta ended recently.

    Speculations about the Ganguly couple’s Rajya Sabha prospects began after Union Home Minister Amit Shah visited their home during his last visit to the state and had dinner with them. The Gangulys have neither confirmed nor denied reports of their being considered for Rajya Sabha. 

  • ‘She is very close to me’: After Shah visit to his home, Sourav talks of his relation with Mamata

    By PTI

    KOLKATA: A day after Union Home Minister Amit Shah paid a visit to his residence and had dinner with his family, which grabbed attention, BCCI president Sourav Ganguly Saturday spoke of his close relation with Chief Minister, who is known to be a strident critic of the BJP.

    Ganguly, former Indian cricket team captain, also showered praise on minister and city mayor Firhad Hakim describing him as a person who can be approached by anyone at any time of the day.

    “Our honourable Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is a person very close to me. I had approached her to help up this institute,” he said at the inauguration programme of a private hospital here.

    The former southpaw said, “I am also very close to Firhad Hakim. He has been seeing me since I was in Class 1. He has been our family friend. All who approach him get help. I too have called him several times,” Ganguly said.

    Shah’s visit to Ganguly’s residence on Friday had fuelled speculation that the former cricketer would join politics soon.

    The dinner was reported to be a close family affair where besides Ganguly and his wife danseuse Dona Ganguly, the cricketer’s elder brother Snehasish Ganguly and other family members were hosts.

    Shah was accompanied by BJP idealogue, Swapan Dasgupta, the party’s state president Sukanta Majumdar and the Leader of Opposition in West Bengal assembly, Suvendu Adhikari.

    Aware of the conjectures, Ganguly had said on Friday, “Many speculations are rife, but I have known him (Shah) since 2008. While playing, I used to meet him. There’s nothing more than that”.

    He had also pointed out he had worked with Shah’s son, Jay Amitbhai Shah, in the Board of Control for Cricket in India.

    Jay Shah is the BCCI secretary.

    Dona Ganguly had said there was no discussion on politics during Shah’s visit to the Ganguly residence.

    “It is human to speculate. But if there is any news, everyone will know.”

    She had also said, “I don’t know whether Sourav will enter politics or not. But he will do well if he joins politics. I believe he will do good work for the people”.

    Ganguly had visited the state secretariat on April 28 and met Banerjee regarding allocation of land to the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB), of which he is the president, to build a stadium.

    Political analyst Biswajit Chakraborty described Ganguly as a “businessman” who is trying to maintain good terms with the central and state governments so that his business runs smoothly.

    “Ganguly is doing this for his own benefit. He knows that he has to keep both the Centre and Mamata Banerjee happy so that his business keeps running. He has been balancing quite nicely,” Chakraborty told PTI.

    Another analyst called Ganguly a “perfect gentleman” who was doing a “balancing act”.

    “Ganguly is an immensely intelligent man. I guess Shah had come to his residence yesterday to evaluate how much Ganguly is ready to plunge into politics. And today, he (Ganguly) spoke about his closeness to the CM. Though I do not see any significance in it, I think he is doing it because he has to survive both nationally as well as in the state,” he added.

  • ‘Only wife and girlfriend give stress’, says Sourav Ganguly, sparks controversy

    By Online Desk

    Former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly has again made it to the headlines for something controversial — a sexist comment this time.

    In an event at Gurgaon, replying to a question on which cricketer’s attitude he likes the most, he said, “I like Virat Kohli’s attitude but he fights a lot.”

    ALSO READ | ‘Let’s not take this further’: BCCI chief Sourav Ganguly over Virat Kohli’s remarks on captaincy

    To another question on how he deals with all the stress in life, the former skipper said, “There is no stress in life. Only wife and girlfriend give stress.”

    Netizens took note of the sexist remarks and have been trolling ‘Dada’ for his recent comments.

    Earlier, Kohli was sacked as the ODI captain, and the day after that Ganguly claimed that BCCI had asked Kohli to not quit the T20I captaincy in September and the selectors had to drop him from the 50-overs captaincy as they wanted a single captain for white-ball formats.

  • How Did Coronavirus Enter IPL Bio-Bubble? What Sourav Ganguly Said

    Days after the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 was postponed, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Sourav Ganguly defended the board’s decision to stage the T20 tournament in the country amid the coronavirus pandemic. The former India captain, while explaining it is difficult to contain the virus even inside a bio-secure environment, cited the example of virus breaching Premier League bubble and affecting football players in the UK. 

    Speaking about a potential breach in the bio-bubble, Ganguly, in an interview with the Indian Express, said the report received by the board suggests there was no breach. 

    “I don’t think so. The report we got is that there’s no breach of the bubble. How it happened is very difficult to say. How so many people are getting (infected) in the country is also very difficult to say,” Ganguly was quoted as saying. 

    Four franchises, Kolkata Knight Riders, SunRisers Hyderabad, Delhi Capitals and Chennai Super Kings, reported positive Covid cases within their camps after which the 14th edition of the IPL was postponed indefinitely. 

    “Professional hands around the world can’t control it (virus penetrating the bubble). When it was happening in England (second wave of the pandemic), there were cases in the English Premier League. Manchester City, Arsenal players got infected,” Ganguly said. 

    The former India skipper mentioned that due to a rigid schedule, it is difficult for the board to reschedule games easily. 

  • BJP’s performance in upcoming Bengal polls will be like Sourav Ganguly’s batting: Rajnath Singh

    By ANI
    WEST MIDNAPORE: Ahead of the West Bengal Assembly elections, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday said that whenever former Indian skipper and BCCI President Sourav Ganguly stepped out of the crease, it was sure that he would hit a six, similarily, the BJP has crossed the crease and will surely hit a six in upcoming polls and form the government in West Bengal.

    “Whenever Sourav Ganguly crossed the crease, it was sure that he would hit a six. Likewise, with your support in Lok Sabha, we have crossed the crease and surely we will hit a six in Assembly polls and form BJP government here,” said the Union Minister while addressing a public meeting here.

    These comments come at a time when speculation is rife over Ganguly joining BJP ahead of the polls.

    Earlier today, the Defence Minister had said the BJP will form the government in West Bengal with a clear majority.

    “The numbers in 2019 Lok Sabha polls is an indication of the change that is going to happen in Bengal with the upcoming state Legislative Assembly election,” Singh said.

    Asked if going to elections without a Chief Minister candidate face will cause a loss to the BJP, he said, “No. Ours is a democratic party. The elected MLAs will choose their leader.”

    Elections to 294-member West Bengal Assembly will be held in eight phases starting from March 27 with the final round of voting taking place on April 29. The counting of votes will take place on May 2.

  • It is up to Ganguly whether he will attend PM’s Kolkata rally: BJP

    By PTI
    KOLKATA: Amid speculation over Indian cricket board president Sourav Ganguly attending the rally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi here on March 7, the BJP on Tuesday said that it would be up to the former cricketer to decide whether he will be there or not.

    If the former Indian captain considers attending the programme, health and weather conditions permitting, he will be most welcome, BJP spokesperson Shamik Bhattacharya told reporters in Kolkata.

    Ganguly was discharged from hospital on January 31, three days after he underwent a fresh round of angioplasty to clear clogged coronary arteries.

    Two more stents were implanted during the surgery.

    Following a mild heart attack in early January, he was diagnosed with Triple Vessel Disease.

    A stent was inserted into one of the blocked arteries at that time.

    “We know Sourav is under rest at home. If he considers attending the meeting, health and weather conditions permitting, he will be most welcome. If he is present, we think he will like it. The crowd will also like that. But we don’t know. It is for him to decide,” Bhattacharya said.

    There was no word from the side of the 48-year-old BCCI chief on the issue.

    There has been speculation that he will join politics ahead of the assembly election in the state.

  • Sourav under pressure to join politics: CPM leader’s shocker on former India Captain

    By PTI
    KOLKATA: Senior CPI(M) leader Ashok Bhattacharya’s statement that BCCI president and former Indian cricket captain Sourav Ganguly, who suffered a heart attack and is now hospitalised, was under pressure to join politics created a storm on Sunday.

    Speculations were rife that the former batting great will join the BJP ahead of the state assembly elections due in April-May this year.

    But Ganguly himself never made his intentions quite clear about taking the political plunge.

    He underwent angioplasty after a “mild” heart attack on Saturday.

    He is under treatment in a private hospital in Kolkata.

    “Some people wanted to use Ganguly politically. That probably exerted pressure on him. He is not a political element. He should be known as Sourav the sporting icon,” Bhattacharya, the BCCI presidents longtime family friend, said.

    “We should not create pressure on him (for joining politics). I had told Sourav last week he should not join politics and he did not oppose my views,” Bhattacharya who visited Ganguly at the hospital said.

    Reacting to the former minister’s comments, BJP state president Dilip Ghosh said, “Some people see politics in everything due to their sick mindset. Like millions of his fans, we only wish that Sourav recovers fully.” 

    Senior Trinamool Congress leader and state minister Sobhandeb Chatterjee, who also visited the former cricketer at the hospital, said that there had never been any effort to induct Sourav “into our party. We are proud to have him as the icon of sports.” 

    Ganguly’s former teammate and state minister Lakshmi Ratan Shukla, TMC MLA and daughter of late BCCI president Jagmohan Dalmiya, Baishali Dalmiya, Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya and several others also visited him.

    West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Saturday visited the hospital to enquire about his health.

    Ganguly had met Dhankhar at Raj Bhavan a week back “in a courtesy visit”.

    Ganguly is stable and his health parameters are normal, doctors said on Sunday.

    The cricket icon was diagnosed with three blocked coronary arteries on Saturday, following which a stent was inserted in one to remove the blockage.

    “Ganguly’s coronary angiography was done at 3 pm and his echocardiography will be repeated tomorrow,” a bulletin, issued by the private hospital where he is admitted, said late on Sunday night.

    His blood pressure is 110/80 and oxygen saturation level is 98 per cent, it said.

    Doctors said they will be deciding on conducting another angioplasty after assessing Ganguly’s condition.

    To a question, a hospital spokesperson said the medical board is not thinking about the option of bypass surgery.

    “Our expert panel will decide on the future course of treatment tomorrow,” she said.

    The nine-member medical board will meet on Monday and discuss further treatment plan with his family members, the bulletin said.

    Ganguly had his dinner at 10 pm.

    Meanwhile, fans of the celebrated former cricketer were seen holding posters that read ‘Come back dada’ outside the hospital, which saw a beeline of visitors like Saturday.

    The batting great was rushed to hospital on Saturday afternoon following complaints of chest pain.

  • PM Narendra Modi speaks to BCCI chief Sourav Ganguly, wishes him speedy recovery

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday spoke to BCCI president and former Indian cricket team captain Sourav Ganguly who underwent angioplasty after suffering a “mild” heart attack, and enquired about his health.

    Official sources said Modi also spoke to the cricket administrator’s wife Dona Ganguly.

    Sourav Ganguly is admitted to a hospital in Kolkata.

    The prime minister wished him a speedy recovery.

    Ganguly is stable and his health parameters are normal, doctors said on Sunday.

    The cricket icon was diagnosed with three blocked coronary arteries on Saturday, following which a stent was inserted in one to remove the blockage.