Breaking News: Saina Nehwal, Olympic medallist and badminton star, joins BJP

New Delhi: Popular badminton player and Olympic-bronze medalist Saina Nehwal joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday (January 29) afternoon at party headquarters in DDU Marg, New Delhi.  Alang with Saina, her elder sister Chandranshu Nehwal also joined the BJP.

Nehwal said that she is inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to work hard for the country. "Today, I am joining a party that performs well for the country. Modi Ji has done so much for sports in India with initiatives like Khelo India. Looking forward to working hard for the country and the people" she said.

She praised the BJP-led government in the Centre and claimed that she would be lucky if she got the opportunity to do something for the public. "BJP is a party that does many things for the country, this is my personal view. I would be lucky if I could do something for the public," Nehwal said.

Her Twitter account had recently caught attention after she had posted identical tweets lauding PM Modi's speech at Delhi's Ramlila Maidan.

The 29-year-old is the latest sportsperson to join the saffron party after the likes of cricketer Gautam Gambhir and wrestler Babita Phogat.

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Nehwal is currently ranked 9th in the women's singles category, according to the BWF World Rankings. She has won several accolades for the country including an Olympic bronze medal in London, she has bagged as many as 24 international titles.

The Haryana-born Saina Nehwal was conferred with the Padma Bhushan — India's third highest civilian award — in 2016. She had previously won the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and the Arjuna Award — the nation's top two sporting honours.