Lok Sabha polls 2024: Yuvraj Singh dismisses reports of him contesting from Punjab’s Gurdaspur, says…

Lok Sabha elections news: Former Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh on Friday dismissed media reports of him contesting the upcoming polls from Punjab’s Gurdaspur. He said that his passion lies in supporting and helping people. 

Singh’s rebuttal comes after several media reports suggested that he is a potential contender for a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from Gurdaspur constituency. The star cricketer, however, denied these reports and said that he will continue to help people through his YouWeCan foundation. 

“Contrary to media reports, I’m not contesting elections from Gurdaspur. My passion lies in supporting and helping people in various capacities, and I will continue to do so through my foundation YouWeCan. Let’s continue making a difference together to the best of our abilities (sic),” the World Cup star said on X (formerly Twitter). 

After Yuvraj Singh’s meeting with Nitin Gadkari last month, Singh’s name started doing the rounds as Sunny Deol’s replacement in the upcoming polls. The news comes ahead of the Lok Sabha elections 2024 likely to be held in April-May.

At present, Gadar 2 star Sunny Deol is the BJP MP from Gurdaspur. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Deol defeated the then Congress MP Sunil Jakhar. Jakhar joined the BJP in May 2022.

Meanwhile, Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann criticised Deol for his absence from the Gurdaspur constituency. Mann said that politics meant serving and being available to the people 24x7. He said that there are a lot of leaders from the state who are serving the state with dedication with zeal. 

Mann amplified his attack against Deol and said people must vote for these leaders rather than the "parachute leaders chosen by people from outside."

Punjab has 13 Lok Sabha seats and 117 Assembly constituencies in the state. Of the 13 seats, the Congress won 8 seats whereas the Shiromani Akali Dal won 2 seats. The Akali Dal bagged Bathinda and Firozpur, contested by Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Sukhbir Singh Badal respectively. 

The BJP bagged 2 seats whereas the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) bagged one seat. The seats won by the BJP included Gurdaspur and Hoshiarpur. The AAP won the Sangrur seat, from where the current CM Bhagwant Mann contested.