Former ace cricketer and BJP MP Gautam Gambhir on Monday launched a scathing attack on Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan and said that he has now become a role model for terrorists. Gambhir said that Khan should be excluded from the sports community for his speech at United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) where he spoke as ‘a role model for terrorist’.
“Sportspeople are supposed to be role models. Of good behavior. Of Team spirit. Of ethics. Of strength of character. Recently in the UN(GA), we also saw a former sportsperson speak up. As a role model for terrorists. @ImranKhanPTI should be excommunicated from the sports community,” the BJP leader said in a tweet.
Last week, Imran Khan addressed the 74th session of UNGA where he talked about the scrapping of special status to Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370. He also said that there would be ‘bloodbath’ once the curfew is lifted from the Valley. New Delhi hit back at Khan for misusing the global platform for delivering a ‘hate speech’ against India.
Responding to Imran Khan at the UN, MEA First Secretary Vidisha Maitra said that what the world heard from Imran Khan was a callous portrayal of the world in binary terms. “Us vs Them; Rich vs Poor; North vs South; Developed Vs Developing; Muslims vs Others. A script that fosters divisiveness at the United Nations. Attempts to sharpen differences and stir up hatred are simply put – “hate speech”,” she said.
Maitra further said that rarely had the General Assembly witnessed such misuse, rather abuse of an opportunity to reflect. “Words matter in diplomacy. Invocation of phrases such as “pogrom”, “bloodbath”, “racial superiority”, “pick up the gun” and “fight to the end” reflect a medieval mindset and not a 21st-century vision,” she added.