BHOPAL: Athletes from Madhya Pradesh, who made India proud at the ongoing Asian Games in China, have a new role to don once they are back home in the assembly poll-bound state.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has decided to rope in MP's star athletes, who won medals for the country at the Hangzhou Games, as state icons for the assembly polls. They will motivate the state’s electorate to exercise their franchise in greater numbers in the coming assembly polls.
“We’ll have them as our state icons in MP to motivate the voters in the state to go and vote in the coming assembly polls enthusiastically. Since their practice for further excellence in the world sporting arena is more important, we’ll use their videos and messages, particularly on social media, to boost voters,” chief electoral officer of Madhya Pradesh (CEO-MP) Anupam Rajan told The New Indian Express on Wednesday.
The Asian Games medallists will join a league of other celebrity icons who have already been working with the ECI in the same role in MP.
Athletes from MP with podium finishes in Hangzhou include ace rifle shooter Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar from Khargone district who won four medals, including two golds and two world records, with the Indian men’s team. Other stars include rifle shooter from Bhopal Ashi Chouksey (who won a team silver and individual bronze), Bhopal’s trap shooter Manisha Keer who won the team silver, Neha Thakur from Dewas district who won silver in sailing, Indore’s Sudipti Hajela who was part of Indian women equestrian team which won gold after 41 years and gold medallist women’s cricket team’s strike bowler Pooja Vastrakar who hails from Shahdol district.
They would join a whole range of existing state icons of the ECI in MP, including actors Rajiv Verma, Divyanka Tripathi and Kartik Aryan, Sanjana Singh (the first trans person to get government job in MP), paracanoe athlete Prachi Yadav and Olympics bronze medallist men’s hockey team midfielder Vivek Sagar Prasad (who is a member of the hockey team in Hangzhou also).
“Once all the athletes are back from China, we’ll meet them and request them to spare time through video messages as state icons to boost polling in the coming assembly polls,” the CEO-MP added.