Dhoni has no right to vote, contest polls in Jharkhand

India’s most successful cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni is not eligible to vote or contest elections in his home state’s cricket association.The Jharkhand State Cricket Association (JSCA), which brags about Dhoni’s contribution to Indian cricket, has made him only an honorary member – someone who can’t participate in association’s decision-making. JSCA member Suresh Kumar, an ardent fan of the cricket star, expressed unhappiness over Dhoni not being given the right to vote or contest elections. “If anybody in India deserves a place in the JSCA on the basis of contribution to the game, it is Dhoni,” Kumar has been quoted by a daily from Ranchi.  Interestingly, bureaucrats, lawyers, businessmen and even bodyguards of the elite in Ranchi have been appointed as permanent members in the state’s cricket association.

The JSCA, however, claimed that the debate is unwarranted since Dhoni is still playing for the country. “Honorary membership is a mark of respect. What he (Dhoni) has done for Indian cricket cannot be measured. I don’t understand why there is hullabaloo over his honorary membership,” said Amitabh Choudhary, the JSCA president and acting secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).