I respect Buddhadeb, says Sourav Ganguly

KOLKATA - Former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly Friday ruled out any political affiliation, but said he had respect for West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee.

“I am in favour of development. I still say West Bengal needs development. But I have never commented on politics. I have not named any minister or anyone else,” Ganguly said in a television interview.

Ganguly said he had deep respect for Bhattacharjee.

“But just because I have respect for him, that does not mean I disrespect someone else,” the retired international cricketer said in an apparent reference to Railway Minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee.

Asked whether he had any future plans to join politics, Ganguly replied: “So far, no”.

To another query, he ruled out any foray into films, but said Indian cricket stars S. Sreesanth and Yuvraj Singh had the potential to excel on the silver screen.