In a move that reeks of political opportunism, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Vice-President Rajeev Shukla has declared India will not play bilateral cricket with Pakistan—the same bilateral series that already wasn’t happening for over a decade now.
Shukla declared, “Whatever our government will say, we will do. We don’t play with Pakistan in bilateral series because of the government’s stand. And we will not play with Pakistan in bilaterals going forward.”
India has consistently dodged bilateral engagements, hiding behind flimsy excuses while strong-arming the ICC to bend to their demands.
Shukla’s latest statement, made in an interview, comes on the heels of the Pahalgam attack, which claimed 26 lives. While the tragedy has been condemned globally, including by Pakistan’s Foreign Office, India has wasted no time in exploiting the incident to further its anti-Pakistan agenda.
Shukla’s remarks, echoed by former Indian cricketer Shreevats Goswami’s call to sever all cricketing ties with Pakistan, reveal India’s true intentions: to vilify Pakistan on the global stage while pandering to their domestic extremist base.
For years, Shukla and the BCCI have offered empty assurances of “working” toward resuming bilateral series, painting themselves as magnanimous despite their clear disdain for Pakistan.
