BJP leader and Assam minister Himanta Biswa Sarma was elected President of the Badminton Association of India (BAI) on Sunday.
Himanta was elected BAI President at an executive committee meeting held in Lucknow.
"Humbled at being elected as President of Badminton Association of India @BAI_Media. My sincere thanks to all. Shall do the best I can," Sarma wrote in his twitter handle.
The post became vacant following the death of incumbent Akhilesh Das Gupta. Assam Badminton Association President Sarma will head the BAI till July 2018. The full term of an elected official is four years and Sarma will be in office for Gupta's unfinished term.
Welcoming the appointment, the federation tweeted: "Welcoming honourable @himantabiswa in the Indian badminton family. We hope that the sport touches new highs under his regime.
"Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma and IAS Devendra Singh unanimously elected as the new President and Senior Vice President, respectively."
Akhilesh Das Gupta's son Viraj Sagar was also inducted as a senior vice-president of the governing body.
BAI General Secretary Anup Narang told IANS that during the meeting, the committee decided that the Indian Open Superseries, which was extended for another four years, will be called the India Open Akhilesh Das Gupta World Superseries tournament from 2018.
(With IANS inputs)
