BJP MP Gautam Gambhir requests that party chairman Nadda relieve him of his political responsibilities ahead of the Lok Sabha elections
sporting player and BJP MP Gautam Gambhir made an unexpected appeal on Saturday, one week before the Lok Sabha polls, asking party president J P Nadda to “relieve” him of his political responsibilities so he could concentrate on his impending sporting obligations.
The Member of Parliament for East Delhi also expressed gratitude to Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for giving him the chance to serve the public.
Gambhir’s action coincided with rumors circulating in the BJP regarding his potential replacement in the East Delhi Lok Sabha seat during this year’s April–May elections.
For the seven Lok Sabha seats in Delhi, the BJP has not yet revealed whose candidates it has chosen. For the East Delhi constituency, speculation has surrounded the possible candidacies of a number of people, including state treasurer Vishnu Mittal, general secretary Harsh Malhotra, and Delhi BJP Virendra Sachdeva.
According to intimate sources, Gambhir is willing to run for office again in the East Delhi seat. But it’s still unknown why he made this surprise choice.
There are seven Lok Sabha seats in Delhi for which the BJP has not yet released tickets. The names of a number of likely candidates for the East Delhi seat are circulating, including state treasurer Vishnu Mittal, general secretary Harsh Malhotra, and head of the Delhi BJP, Virendra Sachdeva.
A few hours before to his abrupt departure, Gambhir encouraged everyone to join the effort by posting a photo of his BJP donation receipt on X, which he shared in support of PM Modi’s goal of creating a “Viksit Bharat.”
Gambhir assisted the BJP in winning the seat in the 2020 Assembly elections and the 2022 Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) elections.
Three of the eight seats that the BJP won in the 2020 Assembly elections—Gandhi Nagar, Vishwas Nagar, and Laxmi Nagar—come from the East Delhi Lok Sabha constituency. In the Municipal Corporation of Delhi elections, the party also won 21 out of 36 wards, which is the highest total among the city’s seven parliamentary constituencies.
Leaders of the Delhi BJP, meanwhile, have labeled Gambhir as a “reluctant” politician, implying that he did not completely commit to party matters. A top Delhi BJP official claims that Gambhir often skipped important ceremonies, meetings, and party activities, giving the appearance that cricket was his major priority, as PTI writes.
Anil Bajpai, the Gandhi Nagar MLA, and Gambhir are also said to have been tense over a number of issues. The person said that there was a lack of harmony in the dynamic between Gambhir and other leaders in his area, citing strained connections between them.
