The Hindu-Muslim debate has been one of the most controversial subjects to talk about in India and every now and then, there comes a statement or an act by someone that adds fuel to the already devastating fire.
One such statement was made by a sacked IPS officer or we can say he asked a question that many might have had in their minds, regarding the rarity of Muslim players in Indian cricket team. From a layman’s point of view, the answer might be as simple as, ‘a player gets a national calling when he deserves’, which is true in every context.
However, Sanjiv Bhatt, a former Indian Police Service officer, as well as a prolific social media user, asked a question via his Twitter channel which could have resulted in some drastic verbal fights on social media, to say the least.
But, Harbhajan Singh, aka the Turbanator, was quick on replying to his question and his answer did act as damage control, before the situation got worse.
Here is what Sanjiv Bhatt posted on his social media profile.
And here is Harbhajan Singh’s befitting reply.
Indian Muslims have done their best in every field of life and have made India proud on many occasions. As far as Indian cricket is concerned, Mohammed Azharuddin, Mohammed Nisar Syed Nazeer Ali, Syed Wazir Ali, Jahangir Khan, Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, Ghulam Ahmad Hasan, Mohammad Kaif and Zaheer Khan, to name a few, have made India proud with helping the team clinching various titles.
Hyderabad pacer Mohammed Siraj has also earned a place in the T20I squad against the upcoming India vs New Zealand series, while we have seen Mohammed Shami troubling the opposition on numerous occasions.
All these names are a proof that talent has always been a gateway to Indian Cricket squad and the secularity of the team can’t be questioned. On the other hand, the likes of Sanjiv Bhatt, who is a prolific speaker shouldn’t have questioned the integrity of the national team, which has fired up the social media website.
Touching a sensitive topic like the Hindu-Muslim debate, that too when the world has already had enough and people have already lost their families due to the hatred caused by these two words, wasn’t a good move (publicity stunt) by Sanjiv Bhatt.
As for Harbhajan Singh, who has 417 Test wickets to his name in 103 matches, much like his famous run-ins with Australian cricketers, the Turbanator has delivered with the same prowess on Twitter.