Dehradun: Indian wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant sparked a social media buzz after making an unusual late-night appeal to Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, seeking help in finding and acquiring a suitable piece of land in the state.
Pant posted his appeal on X at around 12:46 am on Saturday, saying he had been trying for nearly three years to find suitable land in his home state. The cricketer said he loves Uttarakhand and wants to return to his “mountain people” while contributing to the development of the state.
In a second post, Pant directly asked Dhami whether the government could help him acquire land. He even suggested that receiving the land as a “gift” would be special for representing Uttarakhand at the international level.
“If a gift is not possible, I am willing to buy it from the government at government rates,” Pant said, adding that he wanted to build his first home in his home state. He also admitted that he was “seriously” unsure about how the process works.
The posts quickly went viral, with social media users reacting both to the unusual request and to the spelling and grammatical errors in his late-night messages. Some users responded humorously, while others questioned the timing of the request as Pant prepares to return to India’s Test squad.
Wants to shift base from Delhi
Pant, who hails from Uttarakhand, said he wants to shift his base from Delhi to Uttarakhand and build a home there. His appeal also appears to reflect his stated desire to contribute to and promote his home state.
The request has triggered a wider discussion on social media about the rules and procedures for acquiring land in Uttarakhand, alongside jokes about Pant’s unusual midnight approach to the Chief Minister.
Set for Test return
Pant has been included in India’s squad for the upcoming two-Test series against Sri Lanka as he prepares to return to Test cricket after missing India’s recent limited-overs assignments against England and Zimbabwe.
Meanwhile, Pant was also involved in a major IPL development earlier this year. In June, Delhi Capitals brought him back from Lucknow Super Giants in a pre-auction trade ahead of IPL 2027. Delhi Capitals acquired Pant for ₹15 crore, while LSG received spinner Kuldeep Yadav in a deal valued at ₹13.5 crore.
For now, however, Pant appears to have another target outside cricket — finding a place in the Uttarakhand hills that he can eventually call home.
