Afridi’s tweet on Kashmir carnage draws ire of Indian ‘stars’

KARACHI:
As soon as Pakistani flamboyant cricketer Shahid Afridi extended support to innocent Kashmiri civilians on social media against Indian brutalities in the occupied valley, all hell broke loose on Twitter as some really hostile and abusive reactions poured in including from some ‘notable’ Indians.

Afridi had also urged the United Nations (UN) and ‘other international bodies’ to take notice of the Indian oppression and stop the bloodshed of the defenceless civilians at the hands of Indian military.

The tweet also stirred a mild storm in the Indian media, which launched a campaign against the Pakistani cricketer. Indian TV channels attacked Afridi, saying his tweet in favour of Kashmiris was tantamount to insult on India.

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Former Indian opener Gautam Gambhir and a parody account of current batsman Ravindra Jadeja were among those who tried to fire broadside at the Pakistani pinch-hitter.

Gambhir said by mentioning the UN, Afridi must have meant ‘Under Nineteen’ which he suggested was 'his age bracket' and mocked him for celebrating off a no-ball.

'Sir Jadeja', in a series of responses, not only called Afridi ‘beta’ [son] but claimed that  the latter’s whole country was ‘Pak occupied India’.

Lashing out at ‘pseudo liberal’ and ‘spineless’ Bollywood celebrities, he urged the whole nation to boycott Pakistan.

He also tried to confront Afridi by mentioning US sanctions on Hafiz Saeed’s political party.

Another Indian Twitterati attempted exploiting the situation and promoted hate against Pakistani sportspersons and artists.

DG ISPR Maj-Gen Asif Ghafoor, tweeting from his personal account, came up with a befitting response to the Indian media's unwarranted cricticism at the Pakistani star.

He showed Gambhir the right way.

At least 20 people were killed in a Sunday search conducted by Indian forces in Shopian district of the restive region. Over 100 were injured in the operation.

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The incident drew strong reactions from the Pakistani authorities.

UN Secretary General António Guterres also reacted on the incident, saying that a thorough investigation needs to be conducted pertaining to the recent killing of Kashmir youth by Indian troops.

Responding to a question during the daily briefing, the UN chief’s spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said, “Civilians have to be protected wherever they are, whether it is in Gaza, whether it is in Jammu and Kashmir, whether it is in Yemen; it is a basic principle.”