Maharashtra Assembly polls: Salman Khan's bodyguard Shera joins Shiv Sena

Badminton star Saina Nehwal joined the BJP on Wednesday in the presence of senior party leaders.

The shuttler, who hails from Haryana, is settled in Hyderabad and is a former world number one. She has won numerous international titles, including a bronze medal at the Olympics.

Nehwal's sister Chandranshu also joined the party. After joining, Nehwal said that the experience is pretty new for her and that she would want to contribute for the betterment of India.

Nehwal also said that PM Modi is working hard for the country and he inspires her.

One of India's most-successful wrestlers, Yogeshwar Dutt, is now ready to rule the political 'akhada' on a BJP ticket. A candidate from Baroda for the upcoming Haryana assembly polls, Dutt revealed that his prime purpose of joining politics is to serve people.

Former Indian hockey team captain Sandeep Singh, too, is set to play the political game this year. Singh will be contesting the Haryana assembly polls on a BJP ticket from Pehowa.

In August this year, wrestler Babita Phogat and her father Mahavir Singh also joined the poll fray. The father daughter duo from Haryana joined the BJP in presence of sports minister Kiren Rijiju.

The Phogat family are now set to contest in Haryana's political 'Dangal' scheduled to take place later this month. The former Commonwealth Games silver medallist will be contesting from Dadri.

Shooting maestro Colonel Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore at present heads the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. Before stepping into the world of politics, the 49-year-old served in the Army as a commissioned officer in the Grenadier's regiment. In 2013, he retired from the army as Colonel, and a year later, stepped into the world of politics when he joined the BJP in 2014. He was made the information and broadcasting minister in the same year. In 2017, he was given the sports ministry as well.

Rathore will be taking on Congress's Krishna Poonia from Rajasthan.

Discus throw icon Krishna Poonia debuted in the political world in 2013. The 41-year-old was approached by Congress's leadership after which she joined the party in the presence of the now-chief Rahul Gandhi and Ashok Gehlot.

Poonia contested her first election in 2013 from the Sadulpur Assembly constituency. However, she did not come out victorious. In 2018, she contested the elections again and turned out victorious. This year, the former Olympian will be going against Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore from Rajasthan.

Few weeks before the 17th Lok Sabha elections kicked off, paralympian Deepa Malik joined the BJP. The 48-year-old joined the party in the presence of its President Amit Shah and Haryana unit chief Subhash Barala. At the time of joining, she said that her foray in politics will set the stage for better female representation. She also said that her effort will have an impact on the presence of the differently-abled in the Indian political scene.

Football star Prasun Banerjee created history in 2013 when he won the polls from the Howrah Sadar constituency on a Trinamool Congress ticket. The 64-year-old became the first professional footballer to become a Member of Parliament. In 2014, he was re-elected to the Lok Sabha.

This year, Banerjee will be going against the Communist Party's Sridip Bhattacharya.

Football player Baichung Bhutia became a part of the Indian political scene in 2014 when he joined the Trinamool Congress. He contested the Lok Sabha elections from the Darjeeling constituency. However, he did not win the elections. In 2018, the 42-year-old launched his own political party named 'Hamro Sikkim'.