MP High Court junks petition seeking to take away Sachin Tendulkar's Bharat Ratna

Jabalpur: The Madhya Pradesh High Court on Monday dismissed a petition demanding that the Bharat Ratna honour of cricket icon and batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar be revoked.

VK Naswah, the petitioner, had said that Tendulkar exploited the fame associated with the highest civilian award for ‘earning money by endorsing commercial products’ and therefore it should be taken away.

But the division bench of Justices Rajendra Menon and SK Gupta dismissed the petition, saying it was not maintainable. Naswah may approach the Union Government with his demand if he wishes so, the court said.

The petition said that Tendulkar exploited the ‘fame’ of the award to promote commercial products and earn money, which was against the ‘dignity and legacy’ of Bharat Ratna.

He should return the award on moral ground or otherwise it should be revoked, Naswah contended. Naswah also took exception to the reference to the former India captain in a book as 'Bharat Ratna Sachin Tendulkar', saying that Bharat Ratna was not a title. He told reporters later that he will approach the Centre on the issue and move the Supreme Court if the government did not act.