Indian captain Virat Kohli has mounted a strong defense of paceman Mohammad Shami, who has been subjected to wild accusations and criticism following India’s loss to rival Pakistan in the opening match of the T20 World Cup.
Shami has been in the crosshairs as many cricket followers have blamed him for what they say is ineffective bowling against Pakistani batsmen who chased the Indian total without losing a single wicket.
Muslims who greeted Pakistani victory have also faced the music.
Police in India’s most populous state Uttar Pradesh has arrested three Kashmiri students for allegedly celebrating Pakistan’s win over India in Sunday’s T20 World Cup cricket contest.
According to police cited in the Indian media reports, the students were shouting “anti-India and pro-Pakistan” slogans during the match and were charged with “promoting enmity and cyber terrorism.”
The arrests in the city of Agra have been termed as another example of the crackdown against Muslims, who have often complained of discriminatory treatment including an amended citizenship law that disallows Muslim immigrants into India.
Indian media reports said Police arrests came after a complaint by some members of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has been criticized by political rivals as espousing extreme nationalist parties in the name of Hindu religion.
The police action was not the only reaction the Kashmiri students faced. On Monday, their college also suspended the students for allegedly posting WhatsApp status in praise of Pakistani cricketers.
“These people are trying to stir tension, which might spoil the atmosphere of the country,” news website Quint reported, quoting the police complaint against them.
In the desert state of Rajasthan, a school teacher got into trouble and lost her job for sharing a celebratory post on WhatsApp following Pakistan’s victory. She was also arrested on Wednesday, the Press Trust of India reported.
The Indian state reaction contrasted with the sportsmanship shown by the losing Indian captain Virat Kohli, whose embrace of winning Pakistani players at the end of the match splashed across the social media platforms. Both Indian and Pakistani sports followers praised Kohli for the sportsmanly behavior, representing cricket as the gentleman’s game.
Meanwhile, Mohammed Shami, the only Muslim on the Indian cricket team, was viciously trolled and abused online. Several social media users accused him of deliberately giving runs to the Pakistani team, while others labeled him a traitor.
However, Indian captain Virat Kohli strongly defended Shami, saying attack people on the basis of their religion is unacceptable.
