New Delhi: Former Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday, ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
The 37-year-old cricketer is likely to contest elections from one of the seven Lok Sabha seats in Delhi.
Earlier, Gambhir had dismissed all speculations of joining politics by saying: “I have got a young family and I need to think about them as well because I have hardly spent any time with them. I do not want to miss their early days and let us see where I go from here.”
The former opening batsman was conferred with India’s fourth highest civilian honour, the Padma Shri award, earlier this year and received a congratulatory letter from Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Gambhir joined the Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP) in the presence of Union Ministers Arun Jaitley and Ravi Shankar Prasad in Delhi.
“I am joining this party (BJP) after getting influenced by PM Narendra Modi’s vision. I am honoured to get the opportunity to join this platform,” said Gambhir.
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