'If PM Can Go There To Have Biryani...': Tejashwi Yadav Says Team India Should Visit Pakistan For Champions Trophy

Tejashwi Yadav asked if PM Modi could visit Pakistan, then why can't the cricket team travel across the border for the Champions Trophy.

Tejashwi Yadav said involving politics in sports was not good and that if PM Modi can go to Pakistan then the cricket team can go as well.

Source : PTI

As uncertainty looms over India's visit to Pakistan for the ICC Champions Trophy, Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav shared his stance on the matter on Friday, saying that India should travel to Pakistan for the tournament next year. He remarked that it was "not a good thing" to involve politics in sports.

A former cricketer himself, Yadav referred to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Pakistan in 2015, when he had gone to visit his counterpart Nawaz Sharif on his birthday, and quipped that if PM can go to Pakistan, then the Indian cricket team should go as well. 

"Involving politics into sports is not a good thing. We should go, other teams should travel to India... Doesn't everyone participate in the Olympics?... Why shouldn't India go there (Pakistan)? What is objection? If the PM can go there to have Biryani - then it's good, if the India team travels - why this is not good?," Tejashwi Yadav said.

#WATCH | On reports that the Indian cricket team will not travel to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav says, "Involving politics into sports is not a good thing. We should go, other teams should travel to India... Doesn't everyone participate in the… pic.twitter.com/0KxTB8XlfE

— ANI (@ANI) November 28, 2024

Reacting to the RJD leader's statement, BJP leader Tarun Chung said: "Cricket, terror, and talks cannot go hand in hand. Today, Pakistan is internationally recognized as a factory of terrorism, and the evidence for this is undeniable. Tejashwi Yadav should stop acting as Pakistan's advocate."

Jammu: On Tejashwi Yadav and Cricket Controversy, BJP leader Tarun chug says, "Cricket, terror, and talks cannot go hand in hand. Today, Pakistan is internationally recognized as a factory of terrorism, and the evidence for this is undeniable. Tejashwi Yadav should stop acting as… pic.twitter.com/LZH91Ng477

— IANS (@ians_india) November 29, 2024

India has not toured Pakistan 2008 Asia Cup. Following this, the two arch-rivals played a bilateral series in 2012-13 in India, which comprised of white-ball matches. Now, they will be facing each other in ICC tournaments and Asia Cups. 

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) vice president Rajeev Shukla has stressed that the board will act only on the basis of what the Indian government says and will adhere to its directives.

The ICC Champions Trophy is scheduled to be held between February 19 and March, but the official schedule is yet to be announced by the ICC. As per ESPNcricinfo, the International Cricket Council Board will decide on the matter at a meeting on Friday, during which it woll be discussed whether the tournament be solely hosted in Pakistan or under a hybrid-model, wherein the hosting responsibilities will be shared with some other country.