Police complaints have been filed against former India internationals Harbhajan Singh, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina and Gurkeerat Mann, relating to an Instagram reel posted on Sunday - here's what we know about the whole controversy so far.
The four men played in the World Championship of Legends (WCL) final for India Champions against Pakistan Champions in Birmingham on Saturday evening. On Sunday, a video was posted on Yuvraj's Instagram account in which the players were seen attempting to humorously portray that after playing cricket for two weeks as retired professionals, their bodies had all sorts of aches and pains.
Paralympics India condemns Instagram video
As it went viral, the video caught the eye of several para-athletes who slammed its distasteful nature as the cricketers appeared to be mocking disabilities. Para-badminton player Manasi Joshi and para-swimmer Shams Aalam were two who called out the video.
Hopefully you will delete your Instagram video which is making fun of 1.2 billion disabled people in the world. @harbhajan_singh @YUVSTRONG12 @Media_SAI @PMOIndia @mansukhmandviya @MSJEGOI @socialpwds pic.twitter.com/jhLeY85ILg
— Shams Aalam 🇮🇳 (@IamShamsAalam) July 15, 2024
Paralympic India, the national governing body for para sports, also responded to the post on Instagram, calling the behaviour "disgusting" and "insensitive".
The rest of the organisation's comment read, "As star celebrity cricket players have a responsibility to set a positive example, but mimicking the movements of individuals with disabilities, using derogatory gestures & making fun of their physical limitations. Mocking disabilities is not just a joke - it is a form of discrimination. It is time for them to apologise for their actions."
Harbhajan Singh apologises publicly
The video was eventually deleted by Yuvraj following the backlash on social media. On Monday (July 15), Harbhajan Singh took to X (formerly Twitter) to apologise for their actions, saying that they did not mean to hurt anyone's sentiments and asking for the matter to end.
— Harbhajan Turbanator (@harbhajan_singh) July 15, 2024
Police complaint filed against Harbhajan, Yuvraj, Raina
However, this incident has been escalated further. On Monday evening, Arman Ali, the executive director of the National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP) lodged a police complaint with the station house officer (SHO) of the Amar Colony police station in New Delhi.
Apart from the four cricketers, vice president and managing director of Meta India Sandhya Devanathan has also been named in the complaint on grounds of violation of the Information Technology Act, 2000. The complaint also said there had been a breach of Section 92 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act.
Ali spoke to Press Trust of India after lodging the complaint, saying, "They must be penalised for their actions," and that a simple apology from those involved would not suffice.
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