Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai

Mumbai, Sep 13: Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray has launched a scathing attack on the central government for allowing the India-Pakistan Asia Cup cricket match in Dubai, calling the move “anti-national” and an “insult” to millions of Hindus, particularly in the wake of the recent Pahalgam terrorist attack.

In a sharply worded editorial published in the party's mouthpiece Saamna, the Thackeray faction likened the approval of the cricket match to another "terrorist attack" following the bloodshed in Pahalgam. The piece condemned the match as disrespectful to victims of terrorism, especially the Hindu families grieving losses in Kashmir.

The editorial drew a direct line to Shiv Sena’s ideological past, recalling a moment when party founder Balasaheb Thackeray told Pakistani cricketer Javed Miandad that "as long as you are shedding the blood of Hindus in Kashmir, there will be no cricket with Pakistan." It emphasized the longstanding position that “terrorism and cricket cannot go together.”

The Thackeray-led faction questioned the Centre’s priorities, asking whether "playing cricket" was more important than "teaching Pakistan a lesson" in light of ongoing cross-border terrorism. The editorial claimed that public sentiment is strongly opposed to any sporting engagement with Pakistan and accused the BJP of using patriotism as a tool for electoral gain.

Targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the article slammed the government for justifying the match under “global” and “international” commitments, despite fresh wounds from recent terror attacks. It alleged that the BJP was "rubbing salt into the wounds" of the Pahalgam victims' families, stating that their grief is still raw.

The editorial also took aim at foreign policy decisions, criticizing the government's Operation Sindoor rollback under U.S. pressure, Modi's assertion that “America is our friend,” and his engagement with China, suggesting that Pakistan continues its terror activities with “the dragon’s support.”

In a controversial rhetorical flourish, the piece questioned whether the Pakistani cricketers had converted or if Indian players had undergone "ideological circumcision" to make the match palatable—an apparent dig at perceived compromises to national pride.

This strong reaction underscores deep political and emotional divisions over India's sporting ties with Pakistan, especially during periods of heightened tension and recent loss of civilian lives to terrorism. The Centre has not yet issued a response to the Shiv Sena (UBT)'s criticism.