Legendary Indian cricket captain Sourav Ganguly issued a stern clarification vehemently denying recent media reports that suggested he was acting as a political mediator between former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and sitting Baharampur MP and former India and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) all-rounder Yusuf Pathan.
The controversy stemmed from a front-page article published in a prominent Bengali daily on June 4. The report sensationally alleged that Sourav Ganguly had approached Yusuf Pathan, carrying a message from Mamata Banerjee. According to the refuted claims, the message requested Pathan to resign from his post as the MP of the Baharampur Lok Sabha constituency. This would have happened then. Paved the way for Banerjee to contest the ensuing by-elections from the seat. The report further claimed that Pathan had outright rejected the proposal.
“Reckless Disregard of the Truth”: Sourav Ganguly Sets the Record Straight
In a formal statement addressed to all media houses dated June 6, 2026, Ganguly dismantled these claims, labeling them as completely “false and incorrect.”
“I was never requested/asked by Ms Mamata Banerjee to convey any message from her to Mr. Yusuf Pathan, whether to step down from his parliamentary seat, as alleged or otherwise or at all,” Ganguly stated categorically.
The cricketing icon urged the media not to fall prey to unverified rumors. “The allegations in the article, in so far as they concern me, are in reckless disregard of the truth,” he wrote, emphasizing that standard fact-checking procedures should have been applied before publishing such serious insinuations,” he added.
Ganguly also clarified that since no such message was ever delivered, the narrative of Yusuf Pathan rejecting the request is entirely fabricated.
“I never approached or contacted Mr. Yusuf Pathan with any such or other request/message. As such, the question of Mr. Yusuf Pathan responding in the manner as alleged in the article does not and cannot arise,” he added.
Distancing himself from the political maneuvering described in the report by the Bengali daily, Sourav Ganguly concluded his statement with a definitive declaration regarding his public life: “I have never been involved in political matters at any stage with anyone concerned.”
Yusuf Pathan himself denied the allegations in a video that he shared on his Facebook story.
