India vs Pakistan is never just about sport. This was amply proved on Thursday, when Pakistan’s interior minister Rehman Malik waded into the ‘Pakistani players ignored for the IPL’ controversy.
Promising a “befitting” reply to the manner in which Pakistani players were “mistreated” by India, Malik told a Karachi TV channel: “India or any other country that doesn’t give respect to Pakistan will be treated the same way. If there is a desire to improve Indo-Pak friendship, respect should be given to Pakistani sportspersons.”
He added the manner in which the players were “insulted” showed India was not serious about the peace process.
Rehman Dasti, the Member of Parliament who heads the parliamentary committee on sports called for a “total boycott of Indian sporting events.” However, most other MPs did not endorse his views.
India reacted swiftly. External Affairs minister SM Krishna stated that the Pakistani attitide was “unfortunate”.
“Blaming the (Indian) government for the absence of Pakistani players from the next edition of the IPL is unfortunate. The government has nothing to do with the selection of players for sporting events.”
Saying that Pakistan should introspect on the reasons for a strain in Indo-Pak relations, Krishna added, “Pakistan will have to draw a line between where the Government of India is directly connected and where it is not.”
The Ministry of External Affairs also stated that 17 Pakistani cricketers were issued requisite Indian visas at very short notice over December 2009 and January 2010 to facilitate their participation in IPL 2010.
Source : http://www.hindustantimes.com/cricketnews/Politics-trumps-sport-as-IPL-row-snowballs/500747/H1-Article1-500293.aspx
Promising a “befitting” reply to the manner in which Pakistani players were “mistreated” by India, Malik told a Karachi TV channel: “India or any other country that doesn’t give respect to Pakistan will be treated the same way. If there is a desire to improve Indo-Pak friendship, respect should be given to Pakistani sportspersons.”
He added the manner in which the players were “insulted” showed India was not serious about the peace process.
Rehman Dasti, the Member of Parliament who heads the parliamentary committee on sports called for a “total boycott of Indian sporting events.” However, most other MPs did not endorse his views.
India reacted swiftly. External Affairs minister SM Krishna stated that the Pakistani attitide was “unfortunate”.
“Blaming the (Indian) government for the absence of Pakistani players from the next edition of the IPL is unfortunate. The government has nothing to do with the selection of players for sporting events.”
Saying that Pakistan should introspect on the reasons for a strain in Indo-Pak relations, Krishna added, “Pakistan will have to draw a line between where the Government of India is directly connected and where it is not.”
The Ministry of External Affairs also stated that 17 Pakistani cricketers were issued requisite Indian visas at very short notice over December 2009 and January 2010 to facilitate their participation in IPL 2010.
Source : http://www.hindustantimes.com/cricketnews/Politics-trumps-sport-as-IPL-row-snowballs/500747/H1-Article1-500293.aspx
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