Tennis legend Leander Paes joins BJP ahead of West Bengal elections
(Courtesy : @leanderpaes/Instagram)
BJP is looking to end TMC’s long reign in the state.
Leander Paes has made his most surprising move yet, and this time it has nothing to do with tennis. The Indian tennis legend formally joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday, with his induction taking place in the presence of Union Minister Kiren Rijiju and BJP MP Sukanta Majumdar at the party’s headquarters in New Delhi.
The move comes days after Paes met BJP’s West Bengal state chief Nitin Nabin in Kolkata last week, which had already set tongues wagging about the 52-year-old’s political future. The speculation, as it turned out, was well-founded.
This is not Paes’s first brush with politics. He originally entered the political arena by joining the All India Trinamool Congress in 2021, campaigning for the party during the 2022 Goa Assembly elections, but never contested a seat.
His switch to the BJP represents a full crossing of the aisle, and arrives at a particularly charged moment with West Bengal’s two-phase Assembly elections scheduled for April 23 and April 29, with counting on May 4.
Also Read: Leander Paes: Top five achievements of the tennis star’s career
Paes said he now carries the “Tiranga on his shoulders” and expressed commitment to empowering India’s youth and strengthening the country’s sporting ecosystem. He also made his personal connection to Bengal explicit: “My mother has Bengali heritage… Bengal can do better,” he said.
Paes is one of Indian sport’s most decorated figures. He boasts 18 Grand Slam titles including eight in men’s doubles and 10 in mixed doubles, alongside the iconic Olympic bronze, eventually drawing curtains on a career spanning nearly three decades at the highest level of world tennis.
He is the most successful Indian player in Grand Slam history, and his name still carries genuine weight across generations of Indian sports fans.
Whether he will actually contest the upcoming West Bengal polls, however, remains unclear. What Paes does with the platform is the question that matters.
When did Leander Paes join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)?
Tennis legend Paes joined the BJP on March 31 ahead of the Bengal state elections.
Is this Leander Paes’ first foray into politics?
No, Paes had earlier joined the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) during the Goa Assembly elections in 2021.
What did Leander Paes say on joining the Bharatiya Janata party (BJP)?
“I am deeply honoured and grateful to our Home Minister Shri Amit Shah Ji for inducting me into the Bharatiya Janata Party and reposing his trust in me. I will strive to live up to his faith with dedication and sincerity. Till today I wore the Tiranga on my chest. Now I carry it on my shoulders too and will work towards empowering our youth and strengthening sports across the nation.”
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Aniruddh Seshadri Iyer is a passionate sports journalist at Khel Now, specializing in tennis and Olympic sports. An engineer by training, he found his storytelling passion through iconic Grand Slam and Olympic moments. Known for sharp analysis and insightful coverage, he draws inspiration from Novak Djokovic’s resilience. Outside journalism, he enjoys reading, traveling, and playing the guitar.