A day after ex-Pakistani cricketer, Danish Kaneria acknowledged that he was indeed mistreated in Pakistan for being a Hindu, an Uttar Pradesh Minister has said this is the reason the Citizenship Amendment Act was brought by the government.
Minister of State for Minority Welfare Muslim Waqf and Hajj, Mohsin Raza has said: “The way Pakistan treated Kaneria and other players, India needed to bring CAA and welcome such people who have faced atrocities. We say that doors of India are open for them and we shall welcome that.”
While talking about another Pakistani cricketer Mohammad Yousuf, the minister said that he too faced a similar fate, as he was originally a Christian but he ultimately converted to Islam. “They are facing all sorts of discrimination in Pakistan. Danish Kaneria is Dinesh Kaneria but had to change his name to play in the Pakistan team. Similarly, Mohammad Yousuf is a Christian and his name is Yousuf Yuhana. They can come to India and the Citizenship Amendment Act is there and we will welcome them,” said Mohsin Raza.
While speaking to ANI, Danish Kaneria, who was the second Hindu and seventh non-Muslim overall to represent Pakistan in international cricket, had admitted that whatever Shoiab Akhtar revealed in a chat show was the truth.
He confirmed that the Pakistani players did have a problem eating with him and in fact, they didn’t even speak to him since he was a Hindu. Kaneria said that at that time he was scared to speak about the ensuing hostility meted out to him on the pretext of his religion but now he would reveal the names of all those Pakistani players who did not talk to him since he was a Hindu.
This acknowledgement came a day after, former Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Akhtar had in a chat show revealed how Danish Kaneria was discriminated against by other teammates for being a Hindu. Despite being a bowler par excellence, Kaneria was never respected by the team members as he was a Hindu, said Akhtar.
In fact, after the allegations of being involved in spot-fixing, the members of a parliamentary committee had also alleged that Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) was not helping Danish Kaneria to fight his case against lifetime ban imposed by English and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) “because he belongs to Hindu community”.
Extremism and fanaticism against Hindus in Pakistan have been a well-established fact. The minority Hindus of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan have always been treated as separate and unequal citizens in the country in a form of religious apartheid. The country’s former fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar had, in fact, once again exposed the plight of Hindu’s in Pakistan by making this startling revelation while talking on a chat show titled ‘Game on Hai’ on a Pakistani TV channel hosted by cricket expert Dr Numan Riaz.
