A plea has reportedly been filed in the Supreme Court seeking ban on the upcoming Asia Cup 2025 fixture between India and Pakistan.
The arch-rivals are slated to square off on September 14 at the Dubai International Stadium in a Group A encounter. They might face each other thrice in the continental showpiece, provided both teams make it to the Super 4s and final.
Ever since the schedule was announced in July, the BCCI has faced significant criticism for agreeing to play against Pakistan as the tensions between two nations are at an all-time high following the Pahalgam terror attack and retaliatory Operation Sindoor.
With only a few days remaining for the marquee clash, a Pune-based activist named Ketan Tirokdar has filed a petition in the Supreme Court of India, saying that the contest should not go ahead in the backdrop of the Pahalgam terror attack which took away 26 lives.
According to India Today, in his plea, Tirokdar mentioned that the match is against the Constitution of India as it violates Article 21 that assures right to life and personal liberty which includes the right to live with dignity, the right to livelihood, and the right to a healthy environment.
“The said sporting event declared by BCCI is draconian and prejudicial to the interests of the nation, the armed forces and common citizens. Their rights are getting drastically eroded due to the adverse impact of the decision of BCCI to treat Pakistan sportingly as a friend worth playing cricket amid the series of killings of soldiers and citizens being carried out by Pakistani terrorists in the Kashmir Valley," the plea said.
As per the plea, playing the match is like sending “an anti-national message to our forces and civilians that ‘we do not care for you'".
Last month, the Sports Ministry said India won’t engage in any bilateral sporting clash with Pakistan, but the cricket team’s participation in multilateral tournaments will not be stopped.
“In so far as bilateral sports events in each other’s country are concerned, Indian teams will not be participating in competitions in Pakistan. Nor will we permit Pakistani teams to play in India," a statement from Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports said.
“With regard to international and multilateral events, in India or abroad, we are guided by the practices of international sports bodies and the interest of our own sportspersons. It is also relevant to take into account India’s emergence as a credible venue to host international sports events. Accordingly, Indian teams and individual players will take part in international events that also have teams or players from Pakistan. Similarly, Pakistani players and teams will be able to participate in such multilateral events hosted by India," it added.
