Kirodi Meena quits Rajasthan govt as BJP loses LS seats under his responsibility
Jaipur (PTI): Kirodi Lal Meena has resigned as a minister in the Rajasthan government following the BJP's underwhelming performance in the Lok Sabha polls in the state.
During the recently held elections, Meena (72) had said he would quit the Bhajan Lal Sharma government if the BJP loses any of the seven parliamentary seats under his responsibility.
The Rajasthan agriculture, rural development, disaster management and relief minister had said Prime Minister Narendra Modi assigned him the seven seats in eastern Rajasthan on which he worked hard during the polls.
But in the Lok Sabha poll results announced on June 4, the BJP lost some of these seats, including his native Dausa. Overall the BJP won 14 of the state's 25 seats, its tally coming down from 24 in the 2019 polls.
"Kirodi Meena resigned as minister. He gave the resignation to the chief minister 10 days back," an aide of the minister said.
On Thursday, Meena posted the famous Ramcharitramanas lines 'Raghukul reeti sada chali aai, pran jaai par vachan na jaai' on X to underline his unwavering intent to keep his promise at any cost.
Meena campaigned on eastern Rajasthan seats including Dausa, Bharatpur, Karauli- Dholpur, Alwar, Tonk-Sawaimadhopur and Kota-Bundi.
In the results declared last month, the BJP lost Dausa, Bharatpur, Karauli-Dholpur and Tonk-Sawai Madhopur.
Meena said he resigned to keep his word. "There is no reason for resentment. I have resigned. I did not go to the recent Cabinet meeting because I had resigned. I could go morally. I had also met the CM. He had respectfully said that he will not accept the resignation," he told a news channel on Thursday.
Meena said he had already announced in public he would resign if the party does not win the seats he worked on.
He was also in the race of chief minister's post after the results of the assembly elections were announced in December last year, but the party high command picked up first-time MLA Bhajanlal Sharma to lead the state.
Kirodi Meena, who is a five-time MLA and former Rajya Sabha MP, has been a Lok Sabha MP from Dausa and Sawai Madhopur.
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Riyan Parag debuts as first Assam cricketer in national team
Guwahati, Jul 6: All-rounder Riyan Parag became the first cricketer from Assam to play for the national team at the senior level as he made his debut against Zimbabwe in a T-20 tie at Harare on Saturday.
“A son's dream takes flight, and a father's heart swells with pride! Riyan Parag, you've made Assam proud! And what makes it even more special is receiving his Cap from the person who inspired him the most - his father!,” Assam Cricket Association posted on X, congratulating the young player.
Union minister Sarbananda Sonowal termed it a historic day for the state.
“Our very own @ParagRiyan makes his debut in the Indian Cricket Team as he plays his first T20I match for #TeamIndia against Zimbabwe at Harare,” he wrote on the micro-blogging site.
“#RiyanParag becomes the first Assamese male cricketer to play for India. Proud moment; may be reach the pinnacle of sporting glory,” the former Assam CM added.
The 22-year-old, who did not bowl in his first international match, failed to impress with the bat, being caught out for 2 runs off 3 balls in the fifth over as India chased Zimbabwe’s score of 115 runs.
Zimbabwe pulled off an upset of massive proportions when they stunned the Indian team brimming with an array of Next-Gen stars by 13 runs in the first T20I of the five-match series here on Saturday.
Riyan, who was a part of the Indian Under-19 team that won the 2018 Under-19 Cricket World Cup, was named in the Indian national squad for the Zimbabwe tour last month.
He has been representing Assam in domestic cricket since 2017 and has been a member of the Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League since 2018.
Another cricketer from the state, Uma Chetry, had been earlier named in the Indian women's team but is yet to make her international debut.
