Cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle has condemned Waqar Younis for saying that watching Mohammad Rizwan offering the Namaz in front of Hindus during the India versus Pakistan T20 World Cup match was very special for him.
Harsha Bhogle said that it was one of the most disappointing things he had heard and it was terrible for Waqar Younis to say such a thing. Bhogle said, “For a person of Waqar Younis’ stature to say that watching Rizwan offering namaz in front of Hindus was very special to him, is one of the most disappointing things I have heard. A lot of us try hard to play such things down and talk up sport and to hear this is terrible.”
Harsha Bhogle stated further, “I really hope that a lot of genuine sportslovers in Pakistan are able to see the dangerous side to this statement and join in my disappointment. It makes it very difficult for sportslovers like us to try and tell people it is just sport, just a cricket match.”
The commentator said that he was “sure” Waqar Younis would apologise for the comment.
Here’s why Harsha Bhogle is being naive
While Bhogle appears to believe that sports lovers in Pakistan would see the bigotry in the comment by Waqar Younis, the truth of the matter is that it is an extremely mainstream opinion in the country. In the aftermath of Pakistan’s victory, their Interior Minister had said that it was victory for the Muslim world.
Furthermore, Shoaib Akhtar was present at the talk show when the former Pakistani pacer made the comment and Akhtar did not even flinch. Of course, prior to the match, Shoaib Akhtar had himself reiterated his faith in the two nation theory, the theory that led to the partition and the genocide of Hindus that followed, during a talk show with Harbhajan Singh.
This mentality among Pakistani cricketers is not new. Former captain of the Pakistan cricket team and the current Prime Minister of the country, Imran Khan, had said during his days as a player that he considered matches against India as a ‘Jihad’ waged for the cause of Kashmiri Muslims.
Imran Khan had said in the early 1980s, “Well, when we play against India, I don’t see this game as cricket. I think of Kashmir, and regard it as a jihad.”
Shahid Afridi had said proudly during a chat show that he had smashed his TV set after he found his daughter watching a Hindu ritual being performed on a show on Star Plus. Apart from that, Afridi has also claimed that India is committing atrocities against Kashmiris and used deplorable language for Prime Minister Narendra Modi. More recently, Afridi had said that “Taliban have come with a very positive mind.”
Thus, the comments made by Waqar Younis is consistent with the culture that manifests itself in the Pakistan cricket team. For Harsha Bhogle to expect an apology from Younis is naive in the extreme. While Younis might issue a half hearted apology before long, it is very much doubtful whether it would be motivated by any serious sense of guilt.
Persecution of minorities is also extremely normalised in Pakistan, often with state sanction. Hindu girls and Christians are often kidnapped and forcefully converted to Islam before marrying them off in a Muslim family. Despite international outcry, the persecution of minorities has continued unabated.