KOCHI: They have proved their mettle on the sports field. Now, it is time for them to make their mark on a new turf – politics.The local body polls this year will see over a dozen young and seasoned sportspersons changing their persona from a people’s entertainer to a people’s person.
Among the list of candidates coming from the sports field, the name of Reginold Varghese, 60, stands out for the immense contributions he has made to the development of football in Pathanamthitta.
As a former Kerala University player who represented Alappuzha and Pathanamthitta, Reginold is well known in the state’s sports circle. Besides serving as the head of the Physical Education Department of Marthoma College, Tiruvalla, for over 26 years, Reginold was also the team manager of Kerala Santosh Trophy team of 2019.
Contesting from ward 8 of Tiruvalla municipality on a Congress ticket, Reginold is confident of performing well owing to the good rapport he shares with people.
“People have expressed confidence in me due to my involvement in various community development activities, including my work in relief camps during the 2018 flood,” he said. Developing roads and sports infrastructure, resolving drinking water issues and ensuring that government schemes reach people in his area would be his priorities if elected.
UDF candidate Jaison Peters, 57, who represented the Kerala basketball team for three years, is another sportsperson in the fray this year. The former MG University captain also served as the Ernakulam District Basketball Association president. Jaison is competing from ward 16 of Aluva municipality. “Having been the INTUC Union district secretary in KSEB (Ernakulam) for over six years, I was always interested and fascinated in politics. I undertook several social activities when I played for Carmel Basketball club in Aluva in the past,” said Jaison.
For former basketball player Seby V Bastian, 52, who is contesting as an independent from ward 9 of Aluva municipality, this is his second political outing. He won the first time and is confident of winning this year too.
His focus is on reviving a waste water treatment plant near Goodshed Canal, which supplies water to various areas in the municipality, and reopening the Aluva Municipal Park near the Periyar which has remained closed for several years. As a sportsperson, he was part of the Ernakulam team in the state basketball championship.
Robin James, 32, the UDF candidate for Centremukku (ward 9) in Maruthonkara panchayat, is another household name in Kerala’s basketball history.
Having trained from GV Raja Sports School in Thiruvananthapuram, Robin went on to play in basketball tournaments in the mini, junior and youth categories. The son of KPCC executive member K T James, Robin is also the Youth Congress secretary in Maruthonkara panchayat.