Sachin steals limelight in parliament

New Delhi  :  Cricketing star Sachin Tendulkar stole the limelight on the first day of parliament’s monsoon session, as he arrived here to attend the Rajya Sabha.

Wearing a blue striped shirt and black trousers, Tendulkar walked in with Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Rajeev Shukla well before the house was called to order.

Tendulkar, who was nominated to the upper house in April last year, along with actress Rekha and businesswoman Anu Aga, attended the upper house for the second time Monday. He has so far only one attendance marked — that, too, in the monsoon session of 2012.

In the house, the cricketer was seen walking up to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and shaking hands with him.

He was also seen chatting with lyricist Javed Akhtar, sitting next to him. He also thumped the desk when Chairman M. Hamid Ansari congratulated the Indian cricket team for winning the Champions Trophy.

During a brief adjournment during question hour, several MPs walked up to Tendulkar’s seat and shook hands with the cricketer.

The ace batsman’s wife Anjali was sitting in the visitors’ gallery.