Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Aaditya Thackeray wrote to Union Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Wednesday opposing the India-Pakistan match in the Asia Cup, doubting if the BCCI stands above national interest.
Thackeray pointed out that a number of countries have been barred from international sports for reasons for the betterment of humanity and named one such reason as terrorism, which continues to impede peaceful progress between India and Pakistan.
"In the last decade time and again, the nation and its people have been subjected to terrorist attacks originating from Pakistan, and the Union Government has assured it time and again," wrote Thackeray.
He also pointed to the Prime Minister's recent statement that "water and blood cannot flow together from the ramparts of the Red Fort," criticizing the BCCI for placing financial gains and ad revenues above national sentiment. "But only because of BCCI's insistence and greed for the money and ad revenues, perhaps, it holds the 'sindoor', and lives of our jawans as worthless," he further added.
"But, shamefully and unluckily enough, the BCCI is even sending a team to play Pakistan in the Asia Cup. Is the BCCI more than national interest? Is it more than the sacrifice of our Jawans? Is it more than the Sindoor of those who survived the attack at Pahalgham?" Thackeray questioned.
He also challenged the optics of the decision: "We dispatched delegations to the world, saying Pakistan is behind Pahalgam. Now, will we dispatch delegations to the world to explain why we are playing cricket with them?"
Terming it as a "shameful act," the ex-Maharashtra minister went on to say that whereas Pakistan has declined to play hockey in India for security reasons, the BCCI is proceeding with cricket matches for selfish reasons.
The India-Pakistan matches in the Asia Cup have been planned for Dubai, with the tournament getting underway in the UAE on September 9. The two teams will play on September 14, and if things go as planned, again on September 21, with the final taking place on September 29. The tournament will be conducted in T20I format, ahead of the T20 World Cup scheduled to take place in India and Sri Lanka in early next year.
Read also| ‘Not Just An Attack On Me, But...’: Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta Breaks Silence
