cong fields Madan lal against dhumal's son
Publisher Name: The Tribune Publisher Edition: New Delhi Date of Publication: 22 Mar 2009
New Delhi, March 21
After Mohammad Azharuddin, now former all-rounder Madan Lal will also bat and
bowl for the Congress. The cricketer, who joined the Congress today, has been
pitted against sitting MP Anurag Thakur, son of Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister
Prem Kumar Dhumal, on the prestigious Hamirpur Lok Sabha constituency.
Madan Lal’s name was proposed by the central
leadership during a meeting of screening committee on last Friday, party sources
said. Earlier the party’s efforts to convince Bollywood actor Preity Zinta to
contest from Hamirpur did not materialise. Besides Madan Lal, there were other
names under consideration, including that of Narinder Thakur and Sunil Sharma
Bittu, Hamirpur district president of the party.
A faction of the Congress leaders favoured the
candidature of Narinder Thakur, a BJP leader who joined the party recently, to
make a dent in the BJP’s stronghold.
Madan Lal, whose family belongs to Adhri
village in Hamirpur district, said he was prepared for an innings in politics
against Thakur, who is also president of the Himachal Pradesh Cricket
Association. The cricketer, who was part of the World Cup winning squad of 1983,
said his family had been a supporter of the Congress for a long time. “I also
want to do social service and that is why I have joined politics,” he said.
Asked whether he would bowl, bat or field for
the party in the coming elections, the cricketer-turned-politician said, “I will
do both bowling and batting”. On this senior party leader Anand Sharma quipped
that “Madan Lal Sharma will bat and bowl, while the BJP will do the fielding”.
Political observers, however, say that going will not be so easy for the former
cricketer, who should get prepared for a tough fight.
The reason they say is that despite family
moorings in Himachal Pradesh, Madan Lal may be considered an outsider. Moreover,
as it is the Congress is likely to face a tough challenge from the BJP in
retaining its three Parliamentary seats. The BJP had seen a clear-cut victory in
the state Assembly elections December 2007.
In last general elections the Congress won
Shimla, Kangra and Mandi parliamentary seats while the BJP got the Hamirpur
seat.