Many cricket fans and sports lovers in India were disappointed last night after India put up a disastrous performance against Pakistan in the Champions Trophy final and lost the match by a whopping 180 runs.
This loss in the final compounded by the fact that it was against Pakistan, caused a lot of understandable grief among Indians. Reports came out which claimed how people in India were setting fire to posters, chanting slogans against the team and even crying on the streets as a response to the painful defeat.
While this was transpiring, people in Kashmir and a few other areas of the country were instead busy bursting fireworks in order to celebrate Pakistan’s victory over India. Various news outlets reported how there was an atmosphere of jubilation in various parts of Kashmir following Pakistan’s victory.
It was reported how youths in Srinagar burst crackers, flurried Pakistani flags and even chanted anti-India slogans. The youths didn’t stop at that and even threw stones at various security posts after which the authorities had to use tear gas to disperse them.
One anti-India Hurryat leader too decided to add fuel to the fire:
Fireworks all around, feels like an early Eid here. Better team took the day. Congratulations team #Pakistan
— Mirwaiz Umar Farooq (@MirwaizKashmir) June 18, 2017
He though was promptly condemned:
A suggestion @MirwaizKashmir why don’t u cross the border? U will get better fireworks (Chinese?), Eid celebs there.I can help u wid packing
— Gautam Gambhir (@GautamGambhir) June 18, 2017
Incidentally Kashmir wasn’t the only Indian territory plagued by anti-India rhetoric. There were also reports of fireworks erupting in areas adjoining the Aligarh Muslim University. There fireworks reportedly started after Pakistani batsmen scored well and firecrackers were burst after each Indian batsman got out. This prompted the city administration to act quickly and they sent RAF and PAC forces in order to quell the situation after India’s loss.
Various twitter users too claimed [1][2][3] that they had heard similar fireworks being burst in areas near their homes and reacted in fear and disbelief.
It remains to be seen how the authorities react to the whole episode as even though it was just a game of cricket, the worrying trend of so many ‘Indian citizens’ brazenly celebrating the victory of a hostile nation in order to possibly provoke or show their antipathy for India cannot be brushed under the carpet.
