India's former cricket captain Mohammad Azharuddin has formally joined the Congress party, party leaders confirmed Thursday.Formal membership of the party had been given to the cricketer, who was removed from the team after his alleged involvement in match fixing, Congress leader Veerappa Moily told reporters.

'Azharuddin approached me with a desire to join the party a few days ago and the decision to offer him a membership was taken after holding a discussion with party president Sonia Gandhi,' Moily said.

However, the party has not yet decided whether he will contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Azharuddin's controversial past is not a problem for the party, he added.

'There are no criminal cases lodged against him anywhere and it is Azharuddin who has filed a case against Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Everyone is aware that there are a number of leaders in the opposition with criminal background,' Moily added.

Azharuddin was the captain of the Indian cricket team for about nine years in the 1990s.

'I know him personally for the last 25 years and he is a nice man. He has been the most successful Indian captain and has yet not been proven guilty by a court of law,' Moily said.