Chandigarh: Former cricketer Harbhajan Singh may be nominated to Rajya Sabha from Punjab by the new Aam Aadmi Party government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, media sources have said.
The former off-spinner may be given charge of a new sports university in Jalandhar, which Mr Mann had promised to set up during the campaign for the elections held last month. The new Chief Minister has promised to make promoting sports a priority.
“The top leadership of AAP, including the new Chief Minister, has approached Harbhajan Singh with an offer to become their nominated candidate for next Rajya Sabha term. The new Chief Minister wants Harbhajan to work for lifting the standards of sports in the state, which has gone down considerably in past few years,” news agency PTI reported quoting an unnamed person who is close to the former cricketer.
If he becomes a Rajya Sabha member, Mr Singh, 41, will enter a list of former sportspersons who have served as MPs, such as Sachin Tendulkar.
The AAP, which has its roots in Delhi, decimated the ruling Congress to form government in a full-fledged state for the first time. AAP in Delhi under Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal doesn’t have all the powers that a Chief Minister in a full state has since Delhi is a Union Territory. The new AAP government in Punjab, however, will have the police department under its command.
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