Sacrificing nationality for money: Opposition parties protest against BJP for India-Pakistan Asia Cup clash

MUMBAI/NEW DELHI: Opposition parties on Sunday staged protests across several states against the India-Pakistan Asia Cup cricket match in Dubai, accusing the BJP-led Centre of betraying national sentiment so soon after the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 people were killed. The Shiv Sena (UBT) led demonstrations in Maharashtra, Jammu and Madhya Pradesh, with workers burning effigies, smashing television sets and launching the Majha Kunku Majha Desh campaign, under which sindoor and other symbolic items will be sent to the Prime Ministers Office. Party leaders Sanjay Raut, Aaditya Thackeray and Kishori Pednekar accused the government of sacrificing nationalism for money, while alleging that the decision to allow the match was taken without even informing the prime minister. Had Balasaheb Thackeray been alive, this match would not have happened, Raut declared. In Delhi, AAP workers protested against restaurants screening the match, while Arvind Kejriwal called playing Pakistan treason. His colleagues vowed to name and boycott outlets showing the game. In Hyderabad, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi asked whether money from cricket is more valuable than the lives lost in Pahalgam. Women workers of the AAP also held a demonstration in Delhi, urging people to boycott the game. AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal said, Playing a match with Pakistan is treason against the country and every Indian is very angry about it, while senior leader Manish Sisodia questioned if the flames of Operation Sindoor have cooled so quickly that cricket matches are being played with the same terrorists. Members of Shive Sena (UBT) stage a protest against the India-Pakistan Asia Cup cricket match, in Thane, Maharashtra, Sunday, Sept. 14, 2025. Delhi unit president Saurabh Bharadwaj accused the BJP of hypocrisy, saying that when in opposition, it demanded boycotts but now in power it had permitted the game. He also convened an online meeting with party MPs, urging them to boycott the match. RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav branded BJP the a partner of Pakistan, accusing it of stoking conflict only to later soften its stance when convenient. Shiv Sena (UBT) workers in Thane and Sidhi also hit out at the Centre for double standards, pointing out that the Modi government had declared after Operation Sindoor that blood and water will not flow together, yet allowed a cricket contest just months later. Opposition leaders united in their charge that the government had ignored the pain of bereaved families, with protests spreading across Maharashtra, Delhi, Jammu, Madhya Pradesh and Telangana on the day of the marquee clash.