WRESTLER Khali Campaigns for BJP Candidate Drawing Huge Crowds Angering TMC

BENGAL’S ruling Trinamool Congress has complained to the Election Commission of India (ECI) protesting against wrestler The Great Khali for campaigning for BJP in the ongoing Poll. He has campaigned for its Jadavpur   candidate Anupam Hazra. In its complaint, the TMC said Khali is a US citizen.”He (Khali) holds US citizenship, therefore, a foreigner shouldn’t be allowed to influence the minds of Indian electors,” reads a letter dated April 27.Dilip Singh Rana, 46, a resident of Punjab, is widely known by his ring name Khali. Google says his citizenship is Indian and ethnicity is Punjabi.  The   Indian professional wrestler, promoter and actor joined BJP some days ago.    Rana was most notably with WWE from 2006 to 2014 where he performed under the moniker “The Great Khali”.He  drew huge crowds that cheered him as he travelled in an open jeep in South Kolkata’s Jadavpur . “We are old friends,” Hazra, 36, said about Khali”. The wrestler said Hazra was like a “brother” to him. People came out in droves to see India’s first world heavyweight wrestling champion in WWE. Hazra is contesting against Bengali actress and TMC candidate Mimi Chakravarty. When he (Khali) came to know “I am contesting elections, he said he will come… It is because of our bonding that he came. He has never been to any such event earlier,” said Hazra, an assistant professor at Rabindra Nath Tagore founded Visva -Bharati University. “I will come whenever and wherever he calls me,” Khali said, as he urged people to vote for his friend.Khali, incidentally, was an officer in the Punjab Police .Elections in West Bengal were held in three phases and will continue in the remaining four phases on April 29, May 6, 12 and 19. The counting of votes will begin on May 23.