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'Because he didn't join BJP?': TMC, BJP tussle over Sourav Ganguly
Did the Trinamool have any role when Sourav Ganguly took over as the BCCI president? BJP's Dilip Ghosh asked and a TMC, BJP tussle began with Sourav Ganguly exiting the BCCI.
Sourav Ganguly has been targetted as he did not join the BJP as the party had tried to spread the message ahead of the last year's Assembly election in West Bengal, the Trinamool Congress alleged on Tuesday as Roger Binny, a member of the 1983 World Cup winning team, filed his nomination for the post of the BCCI president -- likely to replace Ganguly in BCCI's AGM on October 18. The BJP said it never wanted to induct Sourav Ganguly into its fold and that the TMC is shedding crocodile tears about the changes in the BCCI.
"We don't know when the BJP tried to induct Sourav Ganguly into the party. Sourav Ganguly is a cricketing legend. Some people are now shedding crocodile tears about the changes in BCCI. Did they have any role when he took over as BCCI president? The TMC should stop politicising every issue," BJP national vice president Dilip Ghosh said.
Trinamool's Santanu Sen said this is an example of political vendetta that Amit Shah's son can be retained as the secretary of the BCCI but Sourav Ganguly can't. "Is it because he is from the state of Mamata Banerjee or he didn't join the BJP? We are with you Dada!" the Rajya Sabha MP tweeted.
Trinamool spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said the party is not commenting directly on this matter. "But since the BJP floated such propaganda during and after the polls, it will surely be the responsibility of the BJP to respond to such speculations (that politics is behind Ganguly not getting a second term as BCCI chief). It seems the BJP is trying to humiliate Sourav,” he said, referring to Amit Shah's visit to Ganguly's residence for dinner in May this year. "I think Sourav is the best person to explain the situation. If he has any political interpretation of the situation, I don't know how much he can articulate,” Kunal Ghosh said.
The BJP dismissed the speculations as baseless and said that the party never tried to induct Sourav Ganguly. "We don't know when the BJP tried to induct Sourav Ganguly into the party. Sourav Ganguly is a cricketing legend. Some people are now shedding crocodile tears about the changes in BCCI. Did they have any role when he took over as BCCI president? The TMC should stop politicising every issue," Dilip Ghosh said.
(With agency inputs)
