Hours ahead of Ind-Pak match, protests continue seeking boycott, BJP slams Cong instead

With only a few hours to go for the Asia Cup India-Pakistan match, the political bickering between the ruling BJP at the Centre and the Opposition, mainly Shiv Sena (UBT), continues over whether the arch rivals should play each other this time, in view of the Pahalgam terrorist attack in April that left 26 people dead.

Shiv Sena (UBT) members on Sunday (September 14) raised slogans and even destroyed a television set as part of their protests in different parts of Maharashtra against the cricket match scheduled in Dubai.

The BJP, on the other hand, accused Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray of hypocrisy over his call to boycott the match, and questioned his alliance with the Congress, blaming it for emboldening Pakistan in the past.

Also read: India vs Pakistan match triggers BJP-Uddhav Thackeray clash

Sena (UBT)’s protest

India and Pakistan will face off in Dubai at 8 pm IST on Sunday. According to the government’s new sports policy, India will not play bilateral contests against Pakistan but will continue to face them in multilateral tournaments such as the ongoing Asia Cup and ICC events.

The Sena (UBT) on Sunday organised ‘Majha Kunku Majha Desh’ campaign in Mumbai. “We will send these items (sindoor and other items used by a married woman) through official means, through post, not only from Mumbai, but from across Maharashtra to the PM’s Office,” Sena (UBT) leader and former Mumbai mayor Kishori Pednekar told reporters.

“We will tell the prime minister that those who were responsible for the death of the husbands of our sisters (a reference to the Pahalgam attack) should be caught,” she said.

Also read: PM Modi: Congress backing Pakistan-groomed terrorists, anti-nationals

TV set destroyed

Pednekar, along with her party’s South Mumbai MP Arvind Sawant, staged a protest near Currey Road, where they raised slogans and showed placards voicing their protest against the match.

In Kandivali, the party workers destroyed a television set on a road. The party activists also organised in other parts of the city.

The party wanted to hold a protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi too, but Delhi Police on Sunday denied it permission.

Onus on BCCI, says Aaditya

Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray, son of Uddhav Thackeray, said the match can be boycotted even today, even now. “The @BCCI can still show India that it belongs to India, and not to greed of money. The BCCI can still prove that it isn't anti- national,” he said in a post on X.

Referring to the players, Aaditya Thackeray said those today on the field must realise that they are playing against a country from where terrorists came and massacred innocent people.

“Think of the families who lost their loved ones in Pahalgam. Nothing can come beyond boycotting a country that harbours terrorists. What a shame to know all of this and still going ahead with the game,” he said.

Also read: Patriotism or populist posturing? Why 'Boycott Pakistan' in Asia Cup 2025 is farcical

“Today, we miss a Union Government that would have strongly come down on such anti-national acts,” the MLA said.

Victim’s daughter seeks boycott

The call to boycott the match has been made by the family members of the victims of the Pahalgam terror attack too. Asavari Jagdale, whose father Santosh Jagdale was one of the 26 people who lost their lives in the attack, is one of them.

Asavari told news agency PTI, “I feel today’s match should not take place. Just over five months ago, the Pahalgam attack claimed 26 lives. And after all this, if the BCCI still thinks that they should go ahead with the match, then it is wrong.”

Asavari was at Baisaran Valley with her parents when terrorists gunned down her father and their family friend, Kaustubh Ganbote.

She said allowing the match would amount to playing with the emotions of the victims’ families. “I feel deep shame for those who are ready to play, those who organise the game, and those who will cheer this evening, forgetting the Pahalgam attack, the sacrifices of soldiers, and countless such attacks over the years,” she said.

Also read: India vs Pakistan, Asia Cup 2025: Spinners key, and no big noise

Owaisi slams BJP too

Another voice of protest came from AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi, who asked whether the value of 26 lives lost in the Pahalgam terror attack was more or the money earned through the match.

Addressing a public meeting on Saturday, he said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has stated that water and blood cannot flow together, that terror and talks aren’t possible.

“How much money will the BCCI get from one cricket match? Rs 2,000 crore, Rs 3,000 crore? Tell us, is the value of the lives of our 26 citizens more or the money? The BJP should tell us about it (on the decision to play the match against Pakistan).”

“The BJP always talks about desh bhakti (patriotism), but when it comes to cricket matches, then it gets stumped,” he said. The AIMIM has always stood with the families of those killed in the Pahalgam terror attack, he said.

Protest in Pune

Shiv Sena (UBT) secretary and Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) member Milind Narvekar claimed the decision to hold the India-Pakistan match in the Asia Cup was taken by keeping Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the dark.

“I think the decision to play these matches was taken by keeping Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the dark,” said Narvekar, who is a member of the MCA’s apex council.

The MLC was responding to a question during protests organised by his party against the India-Pakistan match.

The Sena (UBT) workers also staged a protest against the match in neighbouring Pune city.

Also read: India vs Pakistan Asia Cup: Boycott calls from Opposition, Pahalgam victims’ kin

BJP slams Congress

On the other hand, Maharashtra BJP’s chief spokesperson Keshav Upadhye said Thackeray, who accused the BJP of doing business in the name of patriotism, should answer whether the “sindoor (vermilion) of Mumbaikars” was any less than the sindoor being sent by his party workers to the Prime Minister’s Office.

“After the 26/11 attacks, the Indian Army was ready, but the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the Congress got scared, which emboldened Pakistan. Today, the same Congress has become Uddhav Thackeray’s most favoured party, while he finds PM Narendra Modi, who taught Pakistan a lesson on its soil, unacceptable,” Upadhye said in a post on X.

Uddhav’s appeal

At a press conference in Mumbai on Saturday, Thackeray, whose party is an ally of the Congress, said the cricket match between India and Pakistan in Dubai is an insult to national sentiments.

He appealed to people not to watch the match and said his party’s women workers will collect sindoor and send it to the Prime Minister’s Office. Reacting strongly, Upadhye questioned why Thackeray maintained silence after the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai.

“You keep shouting ‘Mumbai is ours’, but why did you remain quiet after 26/11? Do you have the courage to ask (Congress MP) Rahul Gandhi questions about it?” he remarked.

Also read: India vs Pakistan, Asia Cup: Opposition parties slam BJP, dub BCCI 'anti-national'

Congress root cause: BJP

The BJP spokesperson further alleged that under the Congress-led government in the past, Pakistan continued to execute conspiracies across the country, from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, and Mumbai too became a victim.

“Congress gave Pakistan the ‘Most Favoured Nation’ status. Now, that very Congress is Thackeray’s most favoured party. In truth, Congress is the root cause of the Pakistan problem, and Thackeray has embraced it,” Upadhye claimed.

Question of patriotism

Maharashtra BJP media cell chief Navnath Ban also tore into Thackeray and his close aide and Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut, calling their brand of nationalism “hypocritical”.

“If you want to oppose the India-Pakistan match, first seek the resignation of your own party colleague Milind Narvekar, who is on the Mumbai Cricket Association’s apex council. Real nationalism should begin at home. But Thackeray will never do that; instead, he will indulge in hollow protests,” Ban told reporters.

He further mocked the Sena (UBT) leaders, saying if they were true patriots, they should prove it by confronting pro-Pakistan elements in Mumbai’s Bhendi Bazaar or Malvani instead of staging token protests.

Also read: Why India keeps winning against Pakistan, explains Rashid Latif

“When India wins, burst crackers outside Matoshree (Thackeray’s residence in Mumbai), in Bhandup and outside the Saamana (Sena-UBT mouthpiece) office. But the truth is, they feel happier when Pakistan wins,” Ban alleged.

Protest only ‘for show’

He also said the Sena (UBT) leaders were trying to politicise cricket while remaining silent on those within their own camp associated with the sport.

“If you are really against India-Pakistan cricket, start from your own home by asking Narvekar to step down. But since Thackeray lacks that courage, his agitation is only for show,” he claimed.

Mumbai BJP president Ameet Satam also targeted Thackeray, sharing a picture of him with Narvekar on X and asking whether the Sena (UBT) chief had ever questioned Narvekar’s views on the India-Pakistan contest.

Also read: Asia Cup 2025: Cold response to India-Pakistan match, and there is a reason

Bal Thackeray’s words

On Saturday, Thackeray recalled his father, late Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray’s stand, saying, “If blood and water cannot flow together, then how can cricket and blood (go) together?”

Referring to Bal Thackeray’s meeting with Pakistani cricketer Javed Miandad at Matoshree years ago, Uddhav said his father had categorically told Miandad that there could be no cricket until terror attacks from Pakistan ceased.

“Till the time terror does not stop, we shouldn’t maintain any relations with Pakistan,” the former Maharashtra chief minister asserted.

(With agency inputs)