Australian cricketer Mitchell Marsh has received a lot of criticism in India for keeping his feet on the World Cup trophy after his team won by defeating India in the finals in Ahmedabad. Now, an FIR has been registered against him in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, alleging that his actions hurt the sentiments of Indians.
The Australian cricket team won the cup for the sixth time after defeating India by six wickets on 19th November. After the event, a photo of Marsh went viral over the internet in which he could be seen with his feet up on the prized award. He received criticism from the media and fans for disrespecting cricket’s most prestigious award. The photo was initially shared on Instagram by Australian skipper Pat Cummins, after when it went viral on social media. Team India pacer Mohammed Shami also slammed Marsh, saying he was hurt to see Marsh’s feet on the World Cup.
Meanwhile, an RTI activist from Aligarh filed an FIR against Mitchell Marsh in Uttar Pradesh’s Aligarh on 24 November. The activist also wrote to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging him to bar the player from playing in India.
An FIR was lodged against Australian cricketer #MitchellMarsh in Aligarh, UP
— Daily Culture (@DailyCultureYT) November 24, 2023
The complaint was filed by RTI activist Pandit Keshav, alleging that Marsh's actions of dropping legs on the World Cup trophy had offended the sentiments of Indian cricket team fans
He also forwarded a… pic.twitter.com/mxNXGBBBqi
The FIR has been filed by an activist identified as Pandit Keshav who alleged that Marsh’s actions of positioning his legs on the World Cup trophy had deeply offended the sentiments of Indian cricket team fans.
Pandit Keshav also forwarded a copy of the complaint to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting that the Australian player should not be allowed to play cricket in India.
Earlier, Shami criticized the Australian cricketer for the disapproving gesture. “I am hurt. The trophy for which all the teams in the world fight, the trophy which you want to lift over your head, keeping a foot on that trophy did not make me happy,” he was quoted as saying on 23rd November.
PM Modi on 19th November consoled and boosted the Indian players after the country lost the match to Australia for 7 wickets. ANI shared a video revealing PM Modi’s conversation with the Indian players when he went to console them following the upset for the host side. During the interaction, PM Modi personally Invited them to meet him in Delhi and asked Indian players to keep their spirits high. He said, “You reached here after winning 10 matches. These things happen.”
