Indian fan arrested for wearing shirt bearing Afridi’s name

Cricket is supposed to transcend boundaries and be a universal sport, however, it fails to do so as an Indian fan of Pakistani cricketer Shahid Afridi, was arrested by authorities for wearing a shirt bearing his name.

According to the details of the incident provided, Ripon Chowdury, 21, was arrested on Sunday in Hailakandi, which is a small town in the northeastern state of Assam. Chowdury was arrested while watching a cricket tournament after his shirt angered a Hindu nationalist group. The shirt reportedly had ‘Afridi’ written on it.

“A complaint was lodged against him by a local right-wing outfit. We arrested him based on the complaint but gave him bail immediately,” a source told AFP on condition of anonymity, refusing to confirm media reports that Chowdhury had been charged with obscenity in a public place.

While Chowdury was released shortly after being arrested, the incident shows how little tolerance the nations have of each other.

Shahid Afridi himself took notice of the incident and said that he was discouraged over what had happened. “It was shameful to arrest a fan for wearing my shirt,” the 36-year-old told AFP. “Such incidents don´t suit civilised people.”

“You cannot stop fans from supporting a player by arresting them,” he said. “Sports and politics should be kept apart and such incidents go against the principles of sportsmanship.”

Afridi himself got into trouble in March before the World Twenty20 matches, when he said that he got more love from his Indian fans as compared to his Pakistani fans.

Short URL: https://www.newspakistan.pk/?p=54272

Posted by fatimaarshad on Dec 22 2016. Filed under Latest News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.