Hyderabad

Mohammad Azharuddin, who was sworn in as a minister in the Telangana Cabinet on Friday, is a former captain of the Indian cricket team.

His cricketing career came to an abrupt end when he was implicated in the infamous match-fixing scandal in 2000 and was handed a life ban by the BCCI. However, the Andhra Pradesh High Court in 2012 declared the ban illegal.

Azharuddin entered politics in 2009, joining the Congress and winning the Lok Sabha election from Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh that same year.

He later contested unsuccessfully from Rajasthan’s Tonk–Sawai Madhopur constituency in the 2014 General Elections.

On November 30, 2018, he was appointed one of the Working Presidents of the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee.

The former cricketer, who hails from Hyderabad, had sought to contest the 2019 Lok Sabha elections from the Secunderabad constituency in Telangana but did not get the opportunity.

Azharuddin also contested unsuccessfully from the Jubilee Hills Assembly constituency in the 2023 elections.

He was nominated as a Member of the Legislative Council (MLC) under the Governor’s quota by the Telangana government in the last week of August. However, Governor Jishnu Dev Varma is yet to clear the appointment.

Talking to reporters after the swearing-in ceremony, Azharuddin thanked Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, senior party leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and K C Venugopal for making him a minister.

"I am glad. I thank the high command. My supporters," he said.

With the inclusion of Azharuddin, the total strength of the cabinet rose to 16, with room for two more. As per the Assembly strength, Telangana can have 18 ministers.

ALSO READ: Pahalgam saviour Nazakat Ali gets a hero's welcome in Chhattisgarh town

The former cricketer’s appointment to the ministry is seen as a crucial step as the Congress party has been fighting tooth and nail in the Jubilee Hills bypoll, where over a lakh Muslim voters could play a decisive role.