Outrage as Kerala community in Dubai welcomes Shahid Afridi after anti-India remarks

Outrage as Kerala community in Dubai welcomes Shahid Afridi: A Kerala community in Dubai is facing intense backlash on social media for warmly welcoming former Pakistani cricketer Shahid Afridi at a recent event. The community's hospitality has been slammed, particularly given Afridi's past remarks criticizing the Indian Army's handling of the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people.

A video circulating on social media shows Shahid Afridi being warmly welcomed on stage by a Kerala community in Dubai. The crowd erupts in loud cheers as Afridi addresses the gathering, praising "the Kerala part of India and its food". The community members enthusiastically chant "Boom Boom", Afridi's iconic nickname, prompting him to respond with a smile, "Hogaya Boom Boom".

Shahid Afridi has maintained a strong anti-India stance during the recent military and diplomatic tensions between the two nations.

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While speaking on Pakistan’s Samaa TV in April, Afridi said even “if a firecracker were to burst in India, fingers will always be pointed at Pakistan". He went further, blaming the Pahalgam terror attack on a failure by Indian armed forces, saying, “Tum logon ki 8 lakh hi fauj hai Kashmir mein aur yeh ho gaya. Iska matlab nalayak ho, nikamme ho na tum log security de nahi sake logon ko (You have an 800,000-strong army in Kashmir and this still happened. It means you are inefficient and useless if you can't provide security to the people).”

Afridi also mocked Indian media’s coverage of the incident, likening it to a Bollywood production, and appeared to take a veiled jab at Indian cricketers for accusing Pakistan of involvement in the attack.

However, the timing of the warm reception has sparked massive outrage online. Many netizens have labelled the gesture “shameful” and “disloyal,” especially considering Afridi’s controversial statements in the wake of the Pahalgam attack.

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Amid allegations of Pakistani terror organisations being involved in the attack and questions being raised on the role of the Pakistani government, Afridi blamed the Indian Army and termed them ‘incompetent’, which further fuelled the anger among the people. Meanwhile, Afridi’s warm welcome by the Kerala community in Dubai upset many social media users, as reported by the Free Press Journal.

Previously, during the talk show, Shahid Afridi said that “You have an army of 8 lakhs deployed in Kashmir, despite that, such an incident happened there. This means that you people have completely failed in providing security to your people – you people are useless and incompetent.”

Netizens have been outraged by this hospitality from Indians for a Pakistani cricketer who has always spewed vitriol against India, with many expressing their anger and disappointment online.

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