‘Was Asked To Pay Rs 5 Crore For MLA Ticket’: Ex-India Cricketer Manoj Tiwary Quits TMC

Hyderabad: Former India cricketer and outgoing Trinamool Congress MLA Manoj Tiwary announced his decision to quit TMC after the results of the West Bengal legislative assembly elections. He said that the "TMC chapter is over" while adding that the party denied him a ticket from Howrah's Shibpur constituency for refusing to pay an amount of Rs five crores.

"Only those who could pay hefty money could buy tickets. At least 70-72 candidates this time paid around Rs five crore to get a ticket. I was asked, but I refused to pay. Just check how many of those who paid up have managed to win," he told PTI in an interview.

"As far as TMC is concerned, that chapter is over (for me)," he declared.

The 40-year-old former Indian batter and highest run-getter in the history of Bengal cricket (10,195 first-class runs) was working in the role of Minister of State for Sports in the government led by Mamata Banerjee.

"Look, I am not at all surprised by this debacle. This was bound to happen when an entire party has indulged in corrupt practices, and there was no development in any sector," Tiwary stated.

Tiwary also spoke on the controversy that unfolded during the Lionel Messi event in Kolkata. The poorly-managed event led to chaotic scenes at the iconic Salt Lake Stadium after the crowd denied a clear view of Lionel Messi as some of the big names, including politicians and local administrators, mobbed the footballing superstar, who was taken away due to security concerns.

"I knew something like this would happen and refrained from attending the event. I didn't want to be part of an event where common people were taken for a ride. I would repeatedly ask Aroop da, 'Dada, please introduce a sports policy as per the allocated budget'. He never bothered," he added.

Tiwary amassed 10,195 runs from 148 first-class matches with an average of 47.86, including 30 centuries. From 169 List A matches, he racked up 5581 runs with an average of 42.28, including six centuries. Tiwary also featured in 12 matches, accumulating 287 runs with an average of 26.09, including one century and one fifty.