Master blaster Sachin Tendulkar holds prodigious position in the hearts of all the cricket fans. Sachin not only proved himself in the fields but has also proved to be a better human being by performing various duties towards the society. His simplicity and the attitude towards cricket and society helped him to gain many followers.
Today, Sachin motivates and inspires thousands of children and youngsters. Though, he is praised for every act he does within and beyond the boundaries, but, his nomination in the Upper House of the Parliament was welcomed with many resentments.
People were in favour of admiring the cricketer with the Highest Civilian Award, i.e. the Bharat Ratan, but giving a place to a sportsperson in the Upper House of Parliament was not his cup of tea. A mixed reaction amongst many people involving many political dignitaries was encountered.
It was in 2012, when Sachin Tendulkar had accomplished his 100 international centuries and in the same year he was nominated by the Indian National Congress to be member of the Rajya Sabha. It was another achievement for the cricketer. Sachin Tendulkar, who was a supporter of Indian National Congress, was approached by Sonia Gandhi with the nomination of the cricket legend to the upper house of Parliament with the assent of the President Mrs. Pratibha Patil.
There were several grounds of criticism amongst which the procedure by which he was selected topped the list. He was nominated by the Indian National Congress just before the commencement of election which was treated as a strategy for attracting more votes for the party.
As Sachin Tendulkar is backed by many followers and nominating the cricketer would thus be beneficial for the party for attracting the young voters in the election. This action violates the norms of free and fair election. The nomination of the cricketer could influence many voters for the Indian National Congress.
Sachin’s nomination did not have any strong ground, he was nominated because he was a good cricketer and was active in various other areas as well. But a member of Rajya Sabha needs much more than that. Being an active participant of social work and participating in the formation of various bills are two different things.
In parliament, a member should have adequate knowledge about the happenings around the globe and a mindset to look things differently with an intention to solve them in the best manner keeping in mind the needs of the society and other implications. Attainment of such a perspective is difficult for a sportsperson.
There were a few who supported the nomination of Sachin on the grounds that Sachin’s presence in Rajya Sabha would uplift the performance of sports in the country. Sports is that subject which could be understood only by the one who spends maximum time in the field, and therefore, nomination of Sachin could bring advancement in the sports structure of India. Sachin’s assistance might help the other members to resolve issues related to sports. In this regard, for the development of sports in the country, his membership shall be an asset.
Despite of this advantage there was a huge criticism over the nomination because Sachin Tendulkar was nominated at the time when he was still an active sportsperson. Sachin Tendulkar was the first active sportsman to be nominated for the Upper House of the Parliament.
Handling two opposite fields at a time is a very difficult task. The work of a cricketer is completely different from that of a member of the Rajya Sabha and therefore this shall result into inefficiencies in one or the other field. Parliament can run without Sachin, the country can even develop without Sachin’s participation in formulating bills, but, Cricket needs Sachin to perform well.
Participation in the sessions of the Parliament could deteriorate the performance in the lush green fields. Developing the skills required in the field could never be achieved in the four walls of the Upper House. Thus, the real need of Sachin is in cricket and not in Parliament.
There were many who were in favor of giving Bharat Ratan to the Father of Cricket, but he was nominated before he could be honored with the Bharat Ratan he was given the membership of the Upper House. He joined as a member in 2012 but was unable to achieve the required standards.
The four walls of Parliament are different from the open grounds. Master blaster’s attendance in the House was not up to the standards. Though, there is not any prescribed level of compulsory attendance level in the House but a reasonable standard is required for the proper participation.
Inadequate attendance gave a tag of Member of Rajya Sabha to the cricketer but his contribution for the functioning of Parliament was next to nil. Being an active sports person along with being an active Member of Parliament is difficult to manage. There will always be something left in one or the other field when a person is trying to perform actively in more than one field.
The functioning of Parliament requires handsome amount of time and attention. Each and every point presented is discussed deliberately with implications and the aftereffects and therefore a separate body is constituted for fulfilment of this purpose. Sachin Tendulkar’s performance was not up to the mark and there was no extra ordinary contribution of Master blaster in the working of the Parliament.
Therefore, evaluating the performance of Tendulkar in the Upper House of Parliament did not come out to be fruitful. It was like a side task given to the batsman which he tried to complete but could not make through it. But this non-performance should not hinder him from getting honored by the prestigious Bharat Ratan.
It was in 2011, that, the rules regarding for selection of person for Bharat Ratan was amended which added sports as a category. Though the Congress was in haste in giving the Highest Citizen Award to master blaster but he was a deserving candidate for this auspicious award.
He joined the fields back in his teens and since that time he has put his heart and soul to the game. His batting skills were excellent and were appreciated within borders and outside. He has achieved a lot from cricket and gave a lot to cricket. The caliber of cricket in India was on cloud nine when players like Sachin contributed their talents.
Sachin has been successful through his skills in achieving success. He proved to be a successful batsman even in life, facing problems with all the strength and courage like he faced the bowling standing behind the crease with bright eyes from the spinners across the world; from being polite to the other team to involving himself in various social work; accepting challenges in the field and beyond that and ducking the criticism from the media, he excels in every field.
Though, his status and role being a member of the Upper House of the Parliament was not a success but he accepted this as a challenge and worked hard to make the ends meet. Sachin proved through this membership that one cannot be an all rounder outside his comfort zone but a person should not duck the challenges that come in front of him, facing them with dignity gives more satisfaction but ignoring them will only bring resentments.
With a short statured body he managed to hit and excel his batting skills encouraged many short heighted people to bat. The players across the globe were good in height which helped them to swing the bat ending to sixes but Sachin Tendulkar never took his height as a hindrance but worked hard with determination. He attracted many youths in the fields and everyone wanted to become Sachin and wanted to reach the skies just like him
But his name for Bharat Ratan also invited a few controversies claiming that his name was given by the Indian National Congress through the recommendation of Sir Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to the President Pranab Mukherjee was an agenda of the party to gain voters.
The nomination of Sachin Tendulkar was amongst a few other sportsperson who achieved much in their respective field but The Master Blaster was bestowed with this honor heading the nomination list was because of the popularity he has acquired at such a young age. He had played many international matches with a team spirit.
He never played for himself or for wealth which this sport can get him but for the country and for his team mates. He is a gentleman player having which never got involved in controversies and dedicated his life to cricket. He was an icon to the youth and motivated them to select cricket as their ambition and ultimate goal.
Though there were many questions raised over his nomination for the Bharat Ratan, he was never the subject matter of controversies, his hands were clean and he devoted his life for cricket.
Therefore, conferring Bharat Ratan to Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar is justified as he has inspired generation and not only Indians but peoples across the borders; whether from cricket or outside. He brought a different era of cricket in India being a symbol of pride to the country, coloring all the cricket records in tri-colors.
His dedication towards cricket and hard work since his debut at the age of 16 made him deserving candidate of Bharat Ratan. He not only proved himself globally but proved the country throughout the world. He not only participated in the stadium but has always been involved in welfare schemes and social well being.