Amid the IND vs PAK Asia Cup match controversy, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut Monday, shared a purported video showing Indian skipper Suryakumar Yadav exchanging a handshake with Pakistan Cricket Board chief Mohsin Naqvi during a pre-tournament ceremony.
Raut said that before the start of the tournament, the Indian captain shook hands with Naqvi, calling the handshake controversy during the first India vs Pakistan game a “nationalist drama for cameras”.
“If patriotism was truly in your blood, you wouldn’t have even stepped on the field with Pakistan. Top to bottom — pure theatre. Indian public being played,” he wrote in the caption of his X post.
Suryakumar Yadav refused to shake hands with the Pakistani skipper, Salman Agha, at the toss of the Asia Cup Group Stage clash with arch-rivals on Sunday.
Surya later defended his decision, saying a few things are above the sportsman spirit.
However, Raut, who had been demanding a boycott of the game against Pakistan in view of the Pahalgam attack and the armed conflict between the arch-rivals in May, alleged that it was fake patriotism.
Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray also urged “patriots” not to watch the India-Pakistan match.
Addressing a press conference in Mumbai on Monday, Raut said, “I don’t know about the BJP’s fake patriots and devotees, but the actual patriots did not watch the match yesterday.”
Speaking about the Asia Cup final controversy after India refused to accept the trophy from Naqvi, Raut said, “You did not take the trophy from the PCB chief Naqvi, but I shared a video which shows the Indian captain shaking hands with them, having a tea and clicking pictures. Do you think the public is a fool?”