WATCH | Virender Sehwag campaigns for Congress candidate in Haryana; netizens react to ‘surprising endorsement’

Former Indian cricketer Virender Sehwag attracted a lot of attention on Wednesday when he campaigned for a Congress party candidate in Haryana. Notably, Haryana will go to the polls on 5 October and the results will be announced on 8 October.

In a video shared by news agency PTI, Sehwag threw his weight behind Congress candidate Anirudh Chaudhary, calling him his 'elder brother'. Chaudhary, 48, is the son of former BCCI president Ranbir Mahendra and grandson of former Haryana chief minister Bansi Lal. He faces a tough 'family' battle against his cousin and BJP candidate from Tosham, Shruti Choudhary (daughter of Bansi Lal's younger son Surender Singh).

Urging voters to elect Anirudh Chaudhary, Sehwag said, "I consider him (Anirudh Chaudhary) as my elder brother, and his father (Ranbir Singh Mahendra) - who also served as (BCCI) president - had also supported me a lot. This is one of the most important days for him, and I feel I would be able to help him. I urge people of Tosham to help Anirudh Chaudhary win,"

Meanwhile, Chaudhary appeared confident of his victory over Tosham while also launching an attack on the incumbent BJP government in the state. He said, "I am cent per cent sure that Congress will emerge victorious because the current (BJP) government has failed to solve the problems faced by farmers. There's a huge water crisis here, but the government has also failed to solve this issue. Development has not taken place here, and I want to solve all these issues,"

Netizens react to Sehwag's endorsement:

One user on X while labelling the endorsement as ‘surprising’ wrote, That's a surprising endorsement! 😲 Virender Sehwag's support for Congress could bring a new wave of attention to the party. It's always interesting to see sports figures get involved in politics! Let’s see how this impacts the election!

Another user suggested that Sehwag had lost his goodwill by asking votes for Congress candidate, they wrote, “Whatever respect he had gained as a cricketer who played for the country, he managed to wash everything away in a day. A good story coming to a sad break.”

Yet another user raised doubts about Sehwag's ideological choices, writing, “Did he change his ideology or just took an opportunity?”