The Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA,) on the 27th of August, announced the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium would be renamed Arun Jaitley Stadium.
The decision came after the recent demise of Arun Jaitley, as a way to remember India’s former Finance Minister. However, the name of Feroz Shah Kotla’s ground will remain the same. The DDCA will also rename a stand of the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium ground after Virat Kohli, the Captain of Indian Cricket Team.
The stadium was named Feroz Shah after the Mughal dynasty’s king, Firoz Shah Tughlaq.
Firoz Shah worked towards the development of Delhi by constructing canals, rest houses and hospitals. Firoz Shah Tughlaq founded several cities like Jaunpur, Firozpur, Hissar, Firozabad and Fatehabad around Delhi.
Rajat Sharma, the President of the DDCA, addressed the media and said, “It was Arun Jaitley’s support and encouragement that players like Virat Kohli, Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Ashish Nehra, Rishabh Pant and many others could make India proud.”
Arun Jaitley served as the President of the DDCA from 1999 to 2013 and worked for the development of the Association in Delhi. He was extremely fond of cricket and was a certified player. He left the President position in 2014 as he was appointed as the Finance Minister of India under the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP.)
Gautam Gambhir, a former cricket player and the Member of Parliament (MP) of East Delhi, appreciated the decision of the DDCA and said, “I am very happy because he deserves this. He gave Delhi a world class stadium with world class facilities. It (renaming of the stadium) is a good thing but it would have been much better if it was renamed when he was alive. It would have been a perfect gift for him.”
Gambhir also proposed to rename the sports complex of his constituency after Arun Jaitley. He said, “In my constituency, it is the biggest sports complex, Yamuna sports complex. I think it will be a perfect gift for him from me if Yamuna sports complex is renamed as Arun Jaitley sports complex. I have proposed it in the committee and if it gets clear, everyone will be happy, especially the East Delhi constituency.”
The DDCA will conduct an event, during which, the Association will rename the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium as the Arun Jaitley Stadium. The function is scheduled to be held on the 12th of September, at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Amit Shah, the Home Minister of India, Kiren Rijiju, the Sports Minister of India and other BJP ministers will attend the event.
