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DUBAI: A torrent of social media abuse was aimed at India’s only Muslim player, the bowler Mohammed Shami, calling him a ‘traitor’ after his side was thrashed by arch rivals Pakistan at the cricket T20 World Cup on Sunday.
Violence against Muslims in India was also reported after the emphatic win. Cricket clashes between Hindu-majority India and Muslim Pakistan frequently heighten tensions between the neighbours.
Muslim cricketer Shami became the main target after the recent defeat. Hundreds of messages were left on Shami’s Instagram account saying he was a “traitor” and should be thrown out of the Indian team.
However, many fans and politicians also urged support for him, calling on Indian players to reject the hate messages. “Team India your BLM knee-taking counts for nothing if you can´t stand up for your teammate,” Omar Abdullah, a former chief minister in the region of Kashmir, said on Twitter.
Gautam Gambhir, a former India Test cricketer who has become an MP for the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, said it was “shameful” that people were celebrating Pakistan’s win.
In Punjab state students from Kashmir said they were beaten up. A student at an engineering and technology institute said dozens of men armed with hockey sticks and batons attacked them as they watched the closing stages of the game.
“They entered our room, switched off the lights and beat us. They destroyed our laptops,” the student told international news agency AFP, adding, “We are safe now and we have support from our college. But we didn’t expect this at all. We are Indians.”
The match also sparked violence in neighbouring Bangladesh. Two Pakistan supporters were beaten by India fans as they celebrated the win in one southern district, media reports said.
