Pakistan-based terrorist outfit Jaish-e-Mohammad has taken responsibility for the Pulwama terrorist attack.
Three days after the dastardly Pulwama terror attack, IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla said that the bilateral cricket ties with Pakistan will continue to hamper until terrorism stops. He also made it clear that there won’t be any cricket with the neighbouring country unless they get government’s nod.
Although Shukla believes in the idea that sports and politics shouldn’t be mixed, he feels it is impractical to keep the two separate "if somebody is sponsoring terrorism".
“Our position is very clear. Unless the government gives us nod, we are not going to play with Pakistan. Sports should be above all these things but if somebody is sponsoring terrorism, obviously it will affect sports also,” Shukla told reporters.
When asked if India will also boycott playing Pakistan in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019, Shukla said, “That we can’t tell you right now. The World Cup far away. We will see what happens.”
India and Pakistan have not featured in a bilateral series since 2013 but they have faced each other in tournaments such as Asia Cup, Champions Trophy, T20 World Cup and 50-over World Cup. They are scheduled to play in Manchester on June 16.
Following the attack, Cricket Club of India covered a portrait of Imran Khan in its Mumbai office while Punjab Cricket Association removed photographs of Pakistani cricketers inside Mohali stadium to “show solidarity with the nation.”
“This is the outrage of the people which is reflecting in these ways. Obviously, people will react like this. Pakistan should be vary of these things. They should not support terrorism. We have been saying this from day one. When our government was there, we gave tons of documents about their involvement. They should realise this,” Shukla asserted.
(With inputs from IndiaTV)