Sourav Ganguly breaks silence on claims he urged Yusuf Pathan to vacate LS seat for Mamata - Moneycontrol.com

Published 6 June 2026 · politics

Pathan, a former India cricketer, made a successful political debut in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls by defeating veteran Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury in

Pathan, a former India cricketer, made a successful political debut in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls by defeating veteran Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury in Baharampur The development comes amid mounting turmoil within the TMC, which managed to bag just 80 seats in the 2026 Assembly polls Sourav Ganguly denies relaying any message from Mamata Banerjee Ganguly says he was never asked to contact Yusuf Pathan TMC faces internal revolt after poor 2026 Assembly poll results Did our AI summary help? Following her recent electoral setback in West Bengal, where she lost the Bhabanipur seat to chief minister Suvendu Adhihari, reports suggested that Mamata Banerjee was exploring a route to Parliament through the Baharampur Lok Sabha constituency.

According to a report by Anandabazar Patrika, former cricketer Sourav Ganguly allegedly conveyed a message from Banerjee to TMC MP Yusuf Pathan, urging him to vacate the seat so that she could contest the ensuing by-election. Pathan, a former India cricketer, made a successful political debut in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls by defeating veteran Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury in Baharampur. The constituency is widely regarded as a TMC stronghold, with Muslims accounting for over half of its electorate. Sourav Ganguly reacts Dismissing the allegations outright, Ganguly said the claims were published in “reckless disregard of the truth”. “The aforesaid allegations are untrue. I would request the media not to fall prey to rumours and speculations without verifying the correctness of the facts printed and published.

It is extremely unfortunate that it was not seemed necessary to check and verify the truth and veracity of the aforesaid allegations in the article…,” he said. “It is thus necessary to place on record that I was never requested/asked by Ms Mamata Banerjee to convey any message from her to Mr Yusuf Pathan, whether to step down from his parliamentary seat, as alleged or otherwise or at all,” he said, adding that he has never been involved in political matters at any stage. Captain of the Indian Cricket Team, Sourav Ganguly, says, "...It was alleged that I had contacted Mr Yusuf Pathan on behalf of Mamta Banerjee, the former Chief Minister of West Bengal and had carried her message that he should step down/resign from his Constitutional post… pic.twitter.com/0RkRsRhYfo — ANI (@ANI) June 6, 2026 The development comes amid mounting turmoil within the TMC, which managed to bag just 80 seats in the 2026 Assembly polls.