When Arshdeep missed a straightforward catch in the last moments of the heated India-Pakistan Asia Cup game on Sunday, many social media users took to the internet to express their outrage.
Following the Asia Cup match against Pakistan, the Wikipedia page for cricketer Arshdeep Singh was altered, prompting the Indian Union IT Ministry to call Wikipedia officials. His affiliation with a Sikh separatist movement was claimed in the edit, a government source stated on Monday.
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Since dropping an easy catch in the final moments of the heated India-Pakistan game on Sunday, Arshdeep has drawn the ire of many social media users. On Sunday, Singh’s Wikipedia website stated that the Punjab-born Sikh cricketer had been chosen to represent Khalistan, the autonomous Sikh state that is desired by some parties but does not exist. Since then, the Wikipedia entry has been updated.
Virat Kohli, a prominent Indian player, defended Singh after the game by noting that “anyone can make a mistake.” On Twitter, the hashtag #IndiaWithArshdeep, which supports the young athlete, was trending.
Cricket players from the religious minorities in India, which has a Hindu majority, have experienced such assaults before. After India lost to Pakistan in the T20 World Cup last year, Muslim player Mohammed Shami came under attack.
Social media was inundated with thousands of hateful comments labelling Shami a traitor and charging that he had accepted payment to manipulate the game, including on his Instagram account.
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Adamantly supporting Shami at the time was India’s captain, Virat Kohli, who said: “Attacking someone over their religion is the most despicable thing that a human being can do.”
India and Pakistan faced off against each other for the second time in the current Asia Cup during the Super Four game on Sunday. India won the opening game, and they might compete against one another in the Sunday championship.