India’s sporting icon Sachin Tendulkar may not be entitled to receive the country’s highest civilian honour despite call for bestowing it growing louder after the cricketers won the World Cup.
Bestowing the ‘Bharat Ratna’ to the batting icon would require tweaking of the criteria that have been laid down for the coveted award, according to the Times of India.
The ‘Bharat Ratna’ was started in 1954 and has so far been given to 41 eminent personalities, none of whom are sports-persons, the reason being the criteria for the coveted honour.
Constitutional expert Subhash Kashyap says given the current rules “Tendulkar does not qualify for the honour and giving the award to him would require a change in the rules.”
According to the criteria at present, the award is given for exceptional contribution in the fields of art, literature, science and social service. The criteria do not have any mention of sports.
Kashyap says the government has to decide whether it wants to include sports in the criteria for the award. The sports ministry will have to present such a proposal for cabinet approval.
“Once the cabinet gives its approval, the home ministry can bestow this honour on not just Sachin Tendulkar but any other athlete,” he told Times of India.
Prominent players of the World Cup winning Indian team such as skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Harbhajan Singh, Yuvraj Singh and Virender Sehwag have all asked for the honour to be bestowed on Tendulkar after the side’s World Cup win.
Former hockey captain and Olympian Dhanraj Pillay also joined the increasing chorus of voices demanding that Tendulkar be given the ‘Bharat Ratna’ by the Indian government.
“Sachin certainly deserves to be conferred the Bharat Ratna for the way he has been playing for the last 22 years. He was the mastermind of our World Cup victory,” said Pillay, who has represented India in four Olympics and hockey World Cups.
“He’s as fit as a 19 or 20 year old and he should play in the next World Cup too,” said Pillay about Tendulkar who would be turning 38 on April 24.
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