Hyderabad: An advocate of the Supreme Court of India, Vineet Jindal, filed a complaint with the International Cricket Council (ICC) against Pakistani wicket-keeper batsman Mohammad Rizwan for offering namaz on the grounds of Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium during the ICC World Cup match between Pakistan and the Netherlands in Hyderabad.
In the complaint, Jindal alleged, “The act of Mohammad Rizwan when he read namaz on the cricket field amid many Indians is symbolic of the intentional depiction of his religion which stands against the spirit of the sports.”
It further mentioned, “The act of representation of his religion by Mohammad Rizwan in the field and further followed by his statement in his press conference regarding the dedication of his victory to the people of Gaza further attests to his religious and political ideology.”
Earlier too Pakistan batsman offered namaz on field
The complaint also highlighted that this was not the first time Rizwan had offered namaz on the ground during a match; he was previously seen doing so during a T20 match against India.
He called for strict action against Mohammad Rizwan.
Earlier, after a video of the Pakistan cricketer offering namaz on the ground in Hyderabad went viral on social media, netizens started reacting.
One of the netizens accused the Pakistani batsman of mixing cricket and religion, writing, “Mohammad Rizwan offered namaz during the #PAKvsNED match He is here to play #CricketWorldCup2023 or propagate his religion?”
Another social media user commented, “Pakistan wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan offers namaz during drinks break of Pakistan vs Netherland’s match. He deliberately does this when there are Indians watching him.”
Mohammad Rizwan faced heckling by fans during India-Pakistan clash
In a video that surfaced on social media, Mohammed Rizwan was seen being heckled by a few fans in Ahmedabad, with chants of ‘Jai Shri Ram’ as he walked back to the pavilion after being dismissed by pacer Jasprit Bumrah.
Several politicians condemned the act.
