Can Indian Hockey Legend Dilip Tirkey Score A Goal For BJD In Sundargarh? (image-X/DilipTirkey)The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) has nominated Hockey India President Dilip Tirkey for Odisha’s reserved Sundargarh Lok Sabha seat. The hockey stalwart is once again pitted against sitting MP Jual Oram from the BJP.
In the 2014 national elections, the former Union tribal affairs minister Jual Oram and the former captain of the Indian Hockey team faced each other in a three-cornered contest with former chief minister Hemanand Biswal of Congress. Oram secured the seat with 3.4 lakh votes. Although the BJD dropped Tirkey in the 2019 elections, the party has fallen back on the Padma Shree awardee to defeat Oram, who is seeking his sixth win from the Lok Sabha seat.
Calling it his “last election,” Oram’s emotional campaign combined with the PM Modi factor could potentially sway voters in his favour once again.
A Catholic Christian and one of the greatest sports figures in the state, Tirkey does hold a unique position within the electoral politics of Sundargarh district. Considered to be the cradle of Indian hockey, the district has a majority tribal population, especially tribal Christians, for whom the sport is a crucial part of their lives.
In the history of hockey in India, Tirkey has represented the country at the Olympics three times and brought home several international laurels. The BJD has established several astroturf hockey training centres in 17 blocks of the district, constructed the world’s largest international hockey stadium at Rourkela, and co-hosted the FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup (HWC) last year.
Highlighting BJD supremo Naveen Patnaik’s contributions to hockey and the development of sports and infrastructure, Tirkey stated, “I am in politics because of him, and his positive image will definitely get me votes.”
The Sundargarh Lok Sabha constituency comprises Vidhan Sabhas such as Talsara (ST reserved), Sundargarh (ST), Biramitrapur (ST), Raghunathpali (SC), Rourkela, Rajgangpur (ST), and Bonai (ST). There is an ST population of 50.7 percent, 9.2 percent SC, 5.3 percent Muslims, and 18.39 percent Christians.