Online Desk: Amidst voting apathy among the urban people and youths, India’s Election Commission today designated cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar as its “national icon” to encourage greater voter participation in the electoral process.

An MoU for this was signed in New Delhi between the EC and Tendulkar, under which the former cricketer, idolised by the youth, will motivate people in the next three years to cast their ballots. Prior to the general elections, five key Indian states, including Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, will witness elections to their state legislative assemblies sometime in October-November, reports our New Delhi correspondent.

The collaboration between Tendulkar and the EC would mark a significant step towards leveraging the former’s “unparalleled impact” on the youth for increasing voters’ participation in the coming elections, especially in the 2024 general elections. “The EC, through this partnership with Tendulkar, aims to bridge the gap between citizens, especially youth and urban populations, and the electoral process thereby, trying to address the challenges of urban and youth apathy,” the Commission said.

The EC associates itself with renowned Indians from various fields and designates them as “national icons” to motivate voters to participate in elections.

Last year, the Commission had used actor Pankaj Tripathi as the “national icon”. During the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, stalwarts like MSDhoni (cricketer), Bollywood actor Aamir Khan and renowned boxer Mary Kom had been named the EC’s “national icons”.